Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette
by Lilac Moon
Summary: 2 years have passed. As Luke and Leia celebrate their 18th life day, the Skywalker family learns that Breha's condition is worsening. But Anakin and Padme uncover a possible conspiracy behind Breha's illness. Can they save her in time?
1. Part 1 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Hello everyone and welcome to the 21st Forever Destined Vignette! All you need to know is that two years have passed since Blood Ties and everything that has been building throughout the last several vignettes will all begin to come to a head in this and future vignettes. So without further ado, here's part 1 of ! Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 1/?

Padme sighed, as she looked at the very large cake she had spent the whole afternoon making. Each side was adorned with eighteen candles each and beautifully scripted with frosting letters spelling out the names of her oldest twin children. Today was their eighteenth life day and while it was a joyful occasion, it also made Padme a little sad. They were all grown up, even though she remembered welcoming them into the world like it was just yesterday.

~*~

__

"Anakin!" Padme called, as he rushed into the room.

"I'm here Padme," he said, coming by her side and entwining his hand with her own.

"I was afraid...you wouldn't make it," Padme said, as another contraction hit.

"Hey, you didn't think I'd really miss this, did you?" he asked, as another wave of pain racked her body. She felt relief though, as her husband took on some of her pain as his own.

"You...don't have to do that...my love," she said.

"Let me do what I can for you, my sweet angel," he said, as he kissed her forehead tenderly.

"I've missed you so much," he said, as he dabbed her forehead with a cool cloth.

"I think their early coming could be a good sign," he said.

"Why do...you say that?" she asked.

"Maybe that means they'll have your good punctuality and not my inability to get anywhere on time," he joked. She tried to laugh, but was racked by another contraction. It was less painful now though, since her husband was sharing it with her. Bant quietly watched the young couple, as she monitored Padme's vitals, as well as the twins'. They positively radiated love. She had never felt such powerful love and devotion between two people before. These two younglings were going to be very lucky little children.

"Padme...your contractions are almost a minute apart," Bant said, as she lifted Padme's hospital gown and positioned her to give birth.

"On your next contraction, I need you to start pushing, honey," Bant said. Padme nodded and squeezed Anakin's hand, as she felt the pain rising in her again.

"All right angel, you can do this," Anakin encouraged, as he placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Push Padme," Bant said urgently. Padme gasped for air, as she finished the first push.

"Your doing wonderful Padme. These little ones are in a big hurry to get here. The first head is crowning, so this will be a big push," Bant said. Anakin kissed her forehead and held her shoulders.

"Okay Padme...push!" Bant said. Padme whimpered painfully, as she pushed as hard as she could. Bant coached her to push harder and she did. An exhausted cry escaped her lips, as she fell back. A cry pierced the air, as Bant cradled their wiggling, crying daughter. Bant handed her to Barriss, who began cleaning her.

"Oh Padme, look at her. She's so beautiful," Anakin said in complete awe. Padme smiled up at him, love shining in her eyes, before she felt another pain.

"Well, her brother is not wasting any time either. It seems he's just as eager to meet his mommy and daddy as well," Ban said, as the other child's head crowned. Padme squeezed her husband's hand tightly and pushed as hard as she could.

"Come on Padme, push as hard as you can. You're almost done..." Ban coached. Padme pushed with all her strength and another cry pierced the air, as Bant cradled their son and went to clean him up.

"Padme, would you like to hold your daughter?" Barriss asked. Padme nodded and Barriss placed their little girl in her arms.

"Oh Ani...she's beautiful," Padme said.

"She's perfect, just like her mother," Anakin said, as he looked down at her in awe. Padme smiled up at him and gently wiped a tear away that had cascaded down his cheek. He smiled and pressed his lips softly to hers.

"Anakin, would you like to hold your son?" Bant asked. He nodded eagerly and accepted the tiny bundle in his arms.

　"Oh, they're both perfect," Padme said, as she gazed at them both.

~*~

"Padme…do you need help carrying the cake?" Anakin asked, snapping her from her thoughts.

"Huh? Oh sure. Thanks sweetheart," she replied.

"Are you okay?" he asked She nodded.

"Just thinking. I can't believe they're eighteen," she replied. He nodded.

"I know. I was thinking the same. But wow, look at this cake. It's fantastic! You outdid yourself, angel," he told her. She smiled.

"Thanks," she replied, as they shared a tender kiss.

"Oh, I better get something to light the candles with," she mentioned. But Anakin raised one hand and all thirty-six candles ignited. She smiled.

"Or you could just do that," she replied, as they went out into the living area where family and friends waited.

"Wow Mom, that is some cake!" Luke said, as his father set it down on the table. Luke had filled out a little in the last couple years, but unfortunately did not inherit his father's height and remained only a few inches taller than his twin sister. He had grown up to very handsome, like his father, but had inherited some of his mother's features as well. Leia had inherited her mother's beauty, though she was a slight taller than Padme. Anakin was fond of telling her that she was as beautiful as her Mother, but she often showed that she was Anakin's daughter when it came to temper and personality.

"Okay you two, blow out all these candles before the house burns down," Anakin joked. Together, the twins, as different as night and day, each blew out a set of eighteen candles. All present clapped and Luke and Leia began opening gifts as Padme cut and served the cake. After receiving gifts from their grandparents, Aunt, and Uncle, they began opening the ones from their parents. Leia went first and opened a small velvet box. She gasped, as she laid eyes on the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen. The pendant was made of Alderaanian crystal, which she knew to be very rare and expensive and the strand of Nabooan sapphires. The pendant was iridescent and shaped like a crescent moon with a star resting in the crest. It was a symbol often fashioned in the palace on Naboo and had always been one of her favorites.

"Mom…Dad…it's beautiful!" Leia said in awe, as she hugged them tightly, before allowing her father to put it on her.

"We love you so much," Padme told her.

"I love you Mom and you too Daddy," she gushed. As she pulled back, she saw tears in her father's eyes.

"You're all grown up ad I know I have to let go, but the necklace will hopefully remind you of us and where you came from, even when you go on to do great things, because no matter what you'll always be our baby girl and my little Princess," Anakin said. Leia hugged him.

"Don't ever let go Daddy, because I'll always need you," Leia told him. Attention shifted to Luke next, as he also opened a small box. He took out an ignition switch and looked at his father with wide eyes.

"A speeder?" he exclaimed. Anakin smiled and nodded. Upon Luke's eighteenth life day, Anakin had always planned to give him one of the many speeders in his collection.

"Which one?" he asked. Anakin shrugged.

"Which one do you think it is?" he questioned. Luke's eyes got big again.

"The Sapphire Angel?" he asked, referring to his parent's silver open cockpit speeder with blue flames. Anakin scoffed.

"You wish. Maybe when I'm dead. That speeder is your mother's and mine," Anakin replied, as everyone chuckled.

"The red one. Fireball," Luke guessed. Padme scoffed this time.

"Absolutely not. Fireball is a death trap. I've been begging your Dad to get rid of it for years," Padme replied.

"Then it has to be good old yellow lightning," Luke said. Anakin nodded.

"Yep, now you know why I had you help overhaul the engine and install those new mach two power thrusters last month," Anakin said.

"Thanks Dad," Luke said, hugging both his parents. Padme gave her husband a look.

"Mach two power thrusters?" she questioned.

"Don't worry angel, it's safe. But he needs enough speed to chase any would be escaping criminals," Anakin reminded. She sighed.

"Please promise you'll be safe," Padme pleaded.

"He flies like his father so there's no chance of that," Obi-Wan joked.

"Come on Uncle, I'm a great pilot. Flying is in my blood, after all," Luke mentioned.

"Except that what you and your father do is suicide; not flying," Obi-Wan joked. Anakin patted Luke's shoulder.

"He's just getting grumpy in his old age. He needs to take more naps," Anakin joked.

"You're so funny. You're not so young anymore either, baby brother," Obi-Wan retorted. Before their banter could continue, Sola stopped them.

"That's enough. Let's eat some cake," she said, as she ushered her husband to the table, as Anakin put his arms around Padme.

"Are you okay?" he asked, knowing that she was having a hard time accepting that two of her babies were grown adults now. She nodded.

"I'm fine, especially since you're holding me," she replied.

"You know, I dug out their baby books. We could start passing them around and embarrass the life out of them," Anakin suggested. She smiled and bit her bottom lip.

"We shouldn't," she said.

"But you know that you want to go gush about how cute they were," he replied. She kissed his cheek.

"I just hope they'll forgive me, because I can't resist," she said, as she went over and got the books. She opened them and the fawning began.

"Dad…why?" Luke complained, as he watched his mother gush pass around the albums.

"This is so embarrassing. I'm going to get Jake before he sees any of them," Leia complained.

"It makes her happy, Luke and therefore, it makes me happy," Anakin answered his son, as he patted him on the shoulder.

"Oh look, she's getting to the ones of you in the bathtub," Anakin laughed. Luke groaned, mortified. Jayden and Jenna sought no mercy on their older siblings, as they helped pass the embarrassing holos around.

"Ah, you were so cute," Jayden teased. Luke, who swatted his hand away after Jayden started pinching his cheek.

"Keep it up and I'll go get your baby holos and show them to Nat," Luke threatened. But Jayden only smirked.

"Go ahead. Mom already did that to me a long time ago. Natalie's seen them," Jayden replied.

"Yeah, but I bet Jake hasn't seen Leia's," Jenna added.

"Don't you dare, Jen," Leia warned. She scoffed.

"Or what? You'll be me up? Ha, like you could," Jenna teased. It was true. Jenna was insanely strong for a girl, in fact, just as physically strong as Jayden and Luke and stronger than most boys. Unfortunately, Jenna dealt with a lot of issues because of this, one being anger. Boys found her very intimidating and it often made her feel like she wasn't pretty or that she wasn't even a girl at all. And these feelings were often masked by a quick wit and sarcasm. But she was in fact very beautiful, like her sisters. While both Leia and Kimberly's facial structure resembled Padme, Jenna had inherited her facial structure from her father. While her features were chiseled like his, they also had a soft, feminine glow to them, when she wasn't glaring daggers at someone. Her eyes were as blue as Anakin's too and her hair was a beautiful light sandy blonde. But it cascaded down her back in gorgeous, natural ringlet curls that she had inherited from her mother. She was no where near as tall as her brother, for he was quickly gaining on their father, as he had shot up to five foot ten just in the last couple months, but she was taller than her mother and sisters. They were fifteen now and their bodies had just gone through an intense growth spurt in the last year. Jayden had begun to fill out and was no longer as lanky as he once was. His eyes were an intense cobalt color, much like Anakin's were when he activated his powers. It was something that made them all wonder just how limitless his potential would become. His resemblance to his father was uncanny, except he had inherited his mother's rich chocolate hair color, which he was currently growing out in a shaggy style. And while he was definitely his father's son, he was his own person as well. And then there was Kimberly. Her siblings all had very strong personalities and were very outspoken, just like their parents. Kimberly was quiet and shy. Sometimes she had often wondered if she was at all related to her family, though she loved them all. But no one could deny that she was a Skywalker. She was very petite and much smaller than Jenna, despite being almost seventeen. But her parents always made sure she never felt left out or went unheard. Her father especially had always made sure she knew how special she was too, like her brothers and sisters. She was his tiny angel, after all. Still, sometimes Kimberly felt like the odd one in her family. Luke, Jayden, and Jenna were becoming powerful Jedi. She was a capable Jedi too in her own right, but she would never be as powerful as them. Leia was a capable Jedi, but she excelled in the political arena like their mother. She was on her way to becoming a promising young legislator, but Kimberly didn't possess the same prowess for politics that her mother and Leia did. She had yet to find her niche and though her parents insisted that it was okay and that she would eventually find it, she still often felt insecure about herself. But she wasn't the only one that stood out among her siblings, for Jayden was already in love at only fifteen. Anakin and Padme understood his deep connection and strong blossoming for Natalie Organa, but many of his peers did not, which often made it a target for scrutiny. But Jayden didn't care what they thought. He loved her and as he saw her walk out onto the veranda, he quickly followed and observed her, as she stood by the fountain and gazed up at the stars.

"Hey Nat, are you okay?" he asked, noticing the far away look on her face. He could sense her sadness too.

"I'm fine," she said unconvincingly.

"Nat, it's just us out there," he told her. That's when the tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"Oh Jayden," she cried, as he pulled her into his arms and she sobbed against his chest.

"Natalie…what is it?" Jayden asked.

"It's my Mom. She's dying," Natalie sobbed.

"But the healers are still searching. Aren't any of the treatments working?" Jayden asked.

"They keep her alive, but that's about it. She's…she's tired and she's giving up," Natalie answered.

"She can't. I know they'll find a cure," Jayden told her. Natalie shook her head.

"She doesn't think there is one, since they don't even know what she really has. She…wants to go home to Alderaan, be taken off her treatments, and then die with the people she loves around her. Dad has tried to talk her out of it, but she's adamant that her wishes be followed. She doesn't want us spending our lives at her bedside any longer. Dad and I don't agree, but he's going to follow her wishes. We're leaving for Alderaan tomorrow," Natalie cried.

"She's going to die, Jay," Natalie sobbed, almost uncontrollably. He took her in his arms and hugged her fiercely.

"I won't let you go through this alone. I'm going with you," he insisted. She nodded gratefully.

"Thanks," she sniffed. He caressed her cheek softly.

"I love you Nat and I'm always going to be here when you need me," he told her. Fresh tears slipped down her cheeks. They had been together since they were toddlers. Many thought they were too young to be as in love as they were, but there was nothing childish about the love and connection they shared, for it would only continue to grow by leaps and bounds. As she started to cry again about the impending death of her mother, Jayden continued to hold her. Distress rolled off her in waves, so it was only a matter of time before Anakin and Padme noticed.

"What's going on?" Padme asked, as she and Anakin saw Natalie sobbing in their son's arms.

"It's my Mom…she's not getting any better and she's told Daddy that she's ready to accept it. He doesn't want to, but she wishes to return to Alderaan and be taken off her treatments so she can die with the people she loves around her," Natalie cried.

"Oh sweetheart," Padme cried, as she took the young girl in her arms.

"I have to go with Nat when they leave tomorrow," Jayden told his Dad. Anakin put his hand on his son's shoulder.

"We'll all go," Anakin stated.

"Really?" she asked.

"Of course, we love you like our own. And your parents are practically family too. When I first came to the Senate, I went through a lot of bad things and there were a lot of mean people around me, but they were so kind to me and they became my friends in a time when I needed friends the most," Padme told her, as she hugged her close.

"It was no coincidence that I found you when you were a baby. And your parents were the first ones I thought of to raise you. We're going to be there for you and your Dad.

"Thank you," she cried, as Anakin and Padme hugged her.

"I'm going to take her back to the Temple and stay there tonight," he told his parents, who nodded, before leaving the young couple alone.

"I love you and I don't know what I'd do without you," Natalie said, as she gazed into his mesmerizing dark blue eyes.

"And you'll never have to find out, because I love you too," he replied, as he slowly lowered his lips to and their lips met in a tender, passionate kiss. She was so beautiful. Those were his thoughts often, as he gazed at her. He towered over her, for she was petite like his sister Kimberly. She had beautiful, long chocolate colored hair and matching eyes that always seared through him. Her features were beautiful, soft, and delicate, truly worthy of that of the Princess of Alderaan. And he loved her with all his heart and soul.

~*~

As Anakin and Padme went back inside, they announced that they would be going to Alderaan tomorrow, for Breha's health was deteriorating. Despite their celebration, they shared a somber moment of silence.

"It truly is a travesty that we may lose such a dear friend," Rush told Padme.

"I know…she's been my friend for so long. I guess I was sure she would be able to beat this illness," Padme said sadly, not noticing the sudden predatory gaze that momentarily glazed Rush's face.

"I did too. Poor Bail…he must be devastated, knowing that he is going to lose the woman he loves," Rush mentioned.

"I know. And Natalie doesn't deserve to lose her mother," Padme mentioned

"Yes, I pray that Anakin will never lose you," Rush mentioned coolly, causing Padme to look at him curiously.

"Losing an incredible woman like you would certainly destroy a man," he added quickly.

"No man should go through what Bail is going through," he added. Padme nodded. If not for her preoccupation with Breha's plight, Padme would have found Rush's reference to Anakin being destroyed by losing her alarming. Rush, however, or the parasite infecting him, noticed his careless misstep.

"Well, I should be going. As always, you are a gracious hostess, Padme and I always enjoy these little gatherings for our children," Rush said.

"Thank you for coming, Rush," Padme replied, not really paying him any attention, but rather lost in her thoughts.

"Have you seen Jake?" he asked.

"Oh, I think he is on the veranda with Leia," Padme replied. Rush smiled.

"Of course," he said, as he went to retrieve his nephew.

~*~

Jake kissed Leia vigorously and pressed her back against the railing of the veranda momentarily forgetting that her father was only a few feet away inside. His memory lapse continued as he put his hands on her waist. But Leia wasn't into the kiss like she usually was.

"Jake…stop," she said.

"What's wrong?" he asked. She looked at him.

"I just found out Breha is dying. She's like an Aunt to me," Leia said.

"I'm sorry Leia. I'm being insensitive," he apologized.

"It's okay. Do you think you could transmit any reports or assignments we have this week to my datapad?" Leia asked.

"Sure, but aren't you going to be in school?" he asked.

"No, I'm going to Alderaan with my parents," she replied.

"Oh," he said in disappointment.

"I know that the spring social is Saturday, but my family needs me and I want to be able to say goodbye to Breha," Leia said.

"It's okay, I understand," he replied.

"Thanks," she replied, as she kissed his cheek.

"There you are. We should be going," Rush said, as he called out to them. As he turned away, Jake kissed Leia again, allowing his hands to rest on her back. He broke the long, lingering kiss and went inside. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Anakin leaning against the wall, just inside from the veranda, with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh, um, good evening Master Skywalker," Jake said politely.

"Goodnight Jake," Anakin replied.

"Oh Jake," he called then, causing the boy to turn back.

"Yes Sir?" he asked.

"Do you like your hands?" Anakin questioned. Jake looked confused.

"Sir?" he questioned in confusion.

"Are you fond of your hands?" Anakin rephrased.

"Yes Sir," Jake answered.

"Then you might want to be mindful of where you put them on my daughter or I might be tempted to hack them off," Anakin warned. Jake gulped nervously.

"Yes Sir," he answered, as he nearly tripped as he hurried out.

"Daddy…that was so mean!" Leia yelled.

"Sorry Princess, I'm just being a Dad," Anakin replied with a shrug.

"Jake is nice. Why are you so rotten to him?" Leia asked.

"Maybe I won't be when he proves to me that he's good enough for you," Anakin replied. Leia let out a frustrated squeal, as she stormed up to her room.

"Hacking off his hands? Really Ani, that's harsh, even for you," Padme teased.

"He's the one that was almost groping her with me barely five feet away," Anakin replied.

"True, but he's a nineteen-year-old boy. His hormones make him stupid," Padme joked. He chuckled.

"Touché, my star nymph," he replied, as he put his arms around her and they stepped out onto the veranda.

"How are you coping with all this?" he asked seriously. She sighed.

"Breha is accepting that she's dying. I guess I haven't yet accepted it yet though," Padme said.

"I always thought the healers would find something. That's what makes it so bizarre. I was talking to Bant and what she has resembles a handful of different illnesses. Some of the treatments work to keep her alive, but can't cure her. I've never seen the healers as baffled by anything like this before," Anakin mentioned. Padme shook her head.

"I just…it doesn't make sense, Ani. If she had any variety or mutation of any disease it would be contagious. All viruses are. But while the symptoms are like a virus, they act like non-contagious terminal illnesses too. Whatever she has is a radical thing and it just makes me wonder how she ever contracted something like this. Breha doesn't go anywhere obscure. She lives here on Coruscant and goes home to Alderaan periodically to deal with business in the palace," Padme said. Anakin shook his head too.

"It reminds me of when Sifo-Dyas had his scientists injecting me with all those different drugs. It's like someone just threw them all together in a dish and mixed them around," he said. What he said struck Padme. He noticed the perplexed look on her face.

"What is it, angel?" he asked.

"What if what she has isn't some radical new disease?" she asked.

"What are getting at?" he asked.

"What if she has something that someone created?" Padme wondered.

"But why Breha? What would anyone gain by her death?" Anakin questioned.

"The Throne," Padme answered. Anakin shook his head, confused.

"But even if Breha dies, then Bail will continue on and Natalie will become Queen," Anakin stated.

"Except that Natalie isn't Breha's biologically and Bail is only Prince Consort by the way of his marriage. Natalie's royalty could be questioned," Padme replied.

"By who?" Anakin asked.

"If there is no blood heir to follow Breha, then the Alleman family can challenge Natalie's appointment to Queen upon Breha's death, even if in her will Breha has stated that she wishes for Natalie to secede her," Padme stated.

"Do you think they will?" Anakin asked.

"I met Shefan Alleman once many years ago and he has been salivating over the possibility of claiming the Throne for a very long time. He is descended from the noblest and perhaps the most crooked family on Alderaan. They have been waiting for the day that they could force the Organa family out and when he found out that Breha could not conceive a child, it only made him want the Throne more. But he is getting old and will likely try to get parliament to crown his nineteen-year-old son Shane as King," Padme said.

"So, if Breha were to have lived a very long life, then it would be likely he would never see that his son was put into power and that no one would have the clout necessary to challenge Natalie's ascension. Therefore, if he were to find a way to see that Breha didn't live, then the power that he needs in parliament would be in hands," Anakin replied.

"Exactly," Padme stated.

"A conspiracy and he has the money needed to do whatever it takes," Anakin said.

"Do you think it's too farfetched?" she asked.

"Some might think so, but would I be correct in assuming that if the Alleman family gained power that their affiliation would change?" Anakin asked.

"The Alleman family were big supporters of Palpatine," Padme replied.

"Of course and with them in power, Alderaan's support shifts away from Chancellor Iblis and they take a lot of loyal allied planets with them. Our majority in the Senate would drastically shift," Anakin said.

"Just like it did during the Separatist movement," Padme replied. He nodded.

"Iceheart's stench is all over this," Anakin said.

"But how do we prove any of it?" she asked.

"You and I will do a little undercover investigating when we get to Alderaan," he replied.

"Do you think we can save Breha in time?" she asked.

"I hope so. If they did hire a scientist to somehow poison her or make her sick, then we'll find this person and they will give us a cure for her," he said. She nodded and rested her head against his chest, as he pulled her into his arms.

"If someone has poisoned Breha or made her sick, I will find out and we will bring them to justice. The Organa's are family and no one hurts this family without answering to me," Anakin told her. She nodded.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love too angel," he replied, as he swept her into a passionate kiss. Tomorrow, they would embark on a journey to Alderaan and if there was a royal conspiracy going on, then they would expose it. The future of the Organa family and the Throne of Alderaan rested in their hands…


	2. Part 2 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 2! Thanks for all the great reviews. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 2/?

Governor Bibble droned on about today's topic of discussion, but Pooja could not focus on anything they were discussing in the staff meeting this morning. Her mind was on her family, as they traveled to Alderaan. The entire planet of Alderaan was in mourning at the news that their ill Queen was not going to beat this plight and that she was dying, except the Alleman family perhaps. Shefan Alleman had always been a present thorn in Bail's side, but well liked in parliament, mostly because he'd spent years lining the pockets of those that filled Alderaan's seats in parliament, as well as continuously providing them with lavish gifts. Breha's plight weighed heavily on Pooja's shoulders for she was a dear friend to the family and Pooja was truly saddened.

"My Queen…Your Majesty…" Governor Bibble called, trying to get her attention.

"I apologize for being distracted, Governor. I have a lot on my mind," Pooja stated.

"As I was saying, I believe we should recess until this afternoon's parliament session. Our discussion of these matters can continue then," Bibble announced.

"I must apologize in advance again, Governor. I will not be attending this afternoon. I must join my family on Alderaan," Pooja announced.

"With all due respect, My Queen, do you believe it is wise to involve yourself in Alderaan's affairs?" Sio questioned. Pooja gave him a sharp look; one that reminded the elderly politician of her Aunt.

"In our darkest hour, during the invasion led by Falleen, Prince Organa was extremely generous in providing us with food, medical supplies, relief money, and even Alderaan's armed forces, not to mention he sent medical transports to bring our injured citizens to Alderaan's hospitals to relieve our overcrowded ones. If you think I will turn my back on them now in their time of need, then you are mistaken. Queen Organa is a dear family friend and I will go show my support for the continuation of the Organa's rule. If the Alleman family gains control of the throne, then we will lose a strong, powerful ally and possibly even gain a potentially threatening enemy," Pooja stated sternly.

"My sincerest apologies, My Queen. I meant no offense. Will you be taking Captain Landrey with you?" he asked, referring to the Captain of the Royal Guard.

"No, Lt. Landrey has proven to be an excellent bodyguard. My father, Uncle, and many other members of the Jedi Council will be present on Alderaan. I will be perfectly safe," she said, as she rose. Everyone else stood with her.

"I shall retire to my quarters to prepare. Lt. Landrey, please accompany me. I will need help carrying my luggage," she ordered. Adam bowed.

"Yes Your Majesty," he replied, as he followed closely behind her. As they reached her quarters, she opened the door and made an excuse.

"I require your assistance. Please come in," she ordered.

"Yes My Queen," he obeyed, as they went inside. Behind closed doors, the professional façade between them faded and the lovers that they concealed beneath the masks of Queen and bodyguard disappeared, revealing that of two anxious young lovers.

"Are you okay?" he asked with tender concern in his voice.

"I will be. Let me wash my makeup off," she replied. When she wore the face paint of her crown, they never touched, for she was Queen Aridala and if her staff knew of their romantic involvement, the Captain of the Royal Guard would reassign him and she would have no say in the matter. But when she was Pooja, then what she did behind closed doors was her business or theirs rather. As she came out of the fresher, face clean and free of white and red paint, he gazed upon her with a loving stare. They had been fast friends from day one, being that they were around the same age. But a year ago, during her campaign for her second term, their feelings for each other had come out. And he was overjoyed, for he had harbored feelings for her almost from the moment he met her. She was beautiful and her capacity for love and kindness blew him away on a regular basis. He was a De'reux and his mother was the only one that had ever shown him love in any kind of form. She followed his father blinding, mostly out of fear, though he suspected that she did love him, despite the fact that he was a deplorable human being. But she wasn't exactly what he would call evil. The horrible things she did were always things that Xalazar had commanded of her. His father and brother, however, were as cruel and evil as they came. And he had been lying to them for the last year. He kept telling them that the Queen had no romantic interest in him, despite his adoration of her. But he knew his father was growing suspicious and possibly even suspected his treachery. But his true guilt came from the fact that he was lying to his beloved Pooja about his true identity. He was so afraid that he would lose her if she knew he was a De'reux, even though he wasn't like his father or brother. He feared that she would never believe that he truly loved her and was ready and willing to turn his back on his evil family. He knew his father would try to have him killed for it, but if Pooja's family would help him, then he would have a fighting chance. And that's why he knew he had to come clean with her on Alderaan and pray she didn't reject him. Then he would have to convince her family that he did not want to live the life of a De'reux. His father and his Empire constantly destroyed lives and hurt so many. And Adam wanted no part of it and never had. He just hoped he didn't lose Pooja because of the family he was born into.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the pair of arms circling his waist. She stared up at him with her beautiful chocolate eyes and he slowly lowered his lips to hers. She mewed into his kiss, as he moved his lips passionately over hers. Even though they were side by side most of the day, they were rarely alone. At night, he would climb up the balcony to her bedroom and slip in. Then he would be gone by dawn, before her handmaidens came in.

But she was worth it. She was worth risking his life and cutting ties to his family, for he wanted her to be his future.

He kissed her deeply, savoring her sweet taste, as she tangled her fingers in his hair. As they finally pulled apart, she smiled at him.

"Come on, let's go pack. The sooner were on the ship, the sooner we can really be alone," she said, as she led to the bedroom. One hour later, they would be on their way to Alderaan.

~*~

Dooku's largest family cruiser sailed through hyperspace en route to Alderaan. Inside Anakin and Padme's large quarters, Padme switched off the holocom and sighed in frustration, as she sat back. The Holonet was having a field day now that the news of Breha's deteriorating condition had broken. She silently cursed Shefan Alleman and his heartless tactics. They were going to lose a dear friend, a husband was going to lose his wife, a daughter was going to lose her mother, and a planet was going to lose their benevolent ruler. And they would be gaining a cold hearted, power hungry ruler in return.

She felt her husband's hands on her shoulders and sighed, as he gently rubbed them.

"Your back is in knots, angel," he told her, as he gently kneaded his palm along her spine.

"I know, but your magic hands are helping me to relax, as are my thoughts imagining Shefan Alleman being eaten by a Gondark," she replied. He chuckled.

"Nice, though I think such a death would be a little too quick and humane for a sleamo like him," Anakin replied, as he rubbed the back of her neck.

"Not if he's being eaten crotch first," Padme chimed back, without missing a beat and making him laugh.

"Now _that_ is brutal, yet fitting for a snake like him. But he's not King yet. And we haven't lost Breha yet either. We'll prevent both if we possibly can," he promised, as she turned to him and stood up. He took her in his arms and they stared into each others eyes, as playfulness melted into seriousness.

"I know I keep saying this, but I don't know what I'd do if you became ill and I was in Bail's shoes. I'm afraid I would lose my mind if I lost you," he told her.

"I'm fine…you're not going to lose me. I promise," she assured him. He held her close and lowered his lips to hers, meeting with tender passion. Padme felt the familiar tingles of euphoria that she got every time he kissed her. Even after nineteen and a half years of wonderful marriage, his kisses still excited her and she always felt like she was floating when he kissed her. But inevitably Anakin's comlink chimed, interrupting their bliss.

"I'm busy Rex," Anakin said into the comlink.

"_Come on Sir, we have one heck of a Sabaac game going on down here,"_ Rex tempted.

"What have I told you about calling me Sir?" Anakin questioned.

"_Fine. Then get down here and spot me some credits, General pain in the ass," _Rex retorted. Anakin smirked.

"So, you're losing your shirt," Anakin said knowingly.

"_Stop gloating…and yes, I'm losing bad," _Rex replied.

"You're not playing my brother again, are you? Because that would just be stupid…again," Anakin retorted.

"_No…I'm playing Lando. How the heck did this kid get so good?"_ Rex griped. Anakin scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"He grew up on his father's resort. The casino is his backyard," Anakin laughed and Padme giggled as well.

"_You can make fun of me later. Just get down here," _Rex demanded.

"I'm not cheating for you. And tell me exactly why I should leave the insanely beautiful woman that I'm with to come down there to you," Anakin joked.

"_Fine…be that way. I'll just get Kimmy to help her Uncle Rexie. Of course, that means I'll have to teach her the game," _Rex joked.

"You play dirty. Don't you be teaching my tiny angel that no good scoundrel's game," Anakin said, only half joking. Rex laughed.

"_Then get down here. We've got the podrace on the big Holoscreen and one of the Dug's racer's just blew up. They're playing it in slow motion," _Rex tempted.

"Fine. I'll be right down," Anakin grumbled, making Padme giggle.

"Go on, I'll be here when you get back. There's a meeting I should probably attend via holocom in about thirty minutes anyway," she said, as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Besides, there's always tonight," she reminded.

"Then we will pick up where we left off tonight," he promised, as he kissed her.

"Mmm…I'll hold you to that handsome Jedi," she replied.

"I better go, before Rex bets one of my speeders or something I'll have to kill him for," Anakin joked.

"Yes…and you better go save our not so little girl from her Uncle Rex's bad influence," Padme teased.

"You're making fun of me," he replied. She laughed.

"Oh, I'd be too frightened to make fun of a Jedi. Now go and watch podracers explode. You know you want to," she teased. He smirked.

"I do like explosions, especially ones where no one gets hurt," he replied.

"Except the poor Dug in the racer," she protested.

"He's a Dug. He probably cheated and deserved it," Anakin replied.

"You are so bad," she said.

"And you love it," he replied, as he exited their quarters.

~*~

.Marcus Olin concentrated on the hologame in front of him, as he initiated his creature's attack on his opponent. His four armed holo creature put Jenna's six legged winged creature in a headlock, before picking it up and slamming it down. He smirked.

"Twenty more points for me, it's your last move and you're trailing by forty points. You might as well throw in the towel now, because I win this one. I finally beat you at this game," Marcus said. She smirked back and pointed at him.

"And you shouldn't doubt my skills. It's not over yet, Olin," Jenna replied, as she initiated her move. Her creature picked his up and he watched in amazed horror, as she performed a triple body slam, gaining sixty points, killing his creature, and winning the game. He sat back, stunned to speechlessness.

"How?" he asked.

"I'm just that good," she replied. He sighed and slunk down in his seat.

"Hey guys, what are you doing?" Kimberly asked, as she came up to them. Marcus immediately straightened up in her presence.

"I just kicked Marc's butt…again," Jenna said. He flushed crimson in embarrassment.

"Don't let it get you down. She beats everyone at this game," Kimberly said, smiling gently at him. He smiled back, a little goofily in return. Jenna wrinkled her nose and scoffed in disgust at his antics.

"Thanks," he replied. She smiled sweetly at him, as she was known to do and patted his shoulder.

"Anytime," she replied. Marcus watched her go, mouth ajar and his face glazed with a stare of admiration. Jenna glared at him and got up. When he still remained oblivious to her, she hauled off and punched him in the arm. Punching people was often something Jenna was known to do.

"OWWW! What was that for?" he questioned, as he rubbed his arm.

"I don't know. It just seemed like the thing to do. You were about to start drooling over my sister," Jenna replied.

"Hey, it's not my fault your sister…well, both of your sisters are gorgeous," Marcus replied.

"Of course. Guys are always drooling over them. I might as well just be invisible," Jenna snapped.

"That's not true. If I was in a battle, then you know there's no one I'd rather have backing me up than you," Marcus replied, expecting to flatter her. But instead, she only became more angry, her Skywalker temper flaring.

"So, just because I know how to fight better than most boys suddenly means that I'm not even a girl?!" Jenna questioned. It had become a very sensitive issue with her. She had always been a tomboy, despite her mother's various attempts to put her in dresses like her sisters. But Jenna would never have any of it. And now that she was blossoming into a young woman, it was quickly becoming a conflicting issue for her. Boys didn't notice her like they did Leia and Kimberly, or so she thought. The truth was that Jenna was quickly becoming a blonde knockout, but she was the only one that couldn't see it. But the trouble with boys was that they were much too afraid of her to approach most of the time.

"I didn't say that. Of course you're a girl, dummy," he replied.

"Right, but I'm just not my pretty perfect sisters, is that it?" Jenna yelled, as she stormed off.

"Well, maybe if you'd stop scaring the hell out of people all the time, a boy might get up the courage to talk to you," Marcus mumbled, as he let her go.

~*~

"All right, I'm here. How much more have you lost?" Anakin asked Rex.

"My next two paychecks, but I enlisted the help of your father-in-law. He's hopefully going to get some of it back from the kid. He's good. In the time it took to get you down here, he's won three hands," Rex said.

"That's because Riley practically invented Sabaac," Anakin replied.

"Maybe, but not even I can probably undo all this damage. You're one terrible Sabaac player, Commander Rex," Riley quipped.

"Yes, yet you keep playing. You better not have bet one of my speeders again," Anakin warned. Rex smirked.

"I got here before he could do that," Riley replied. Lando smirked.

"I was so close to owning that little black mach three Corellian sports speeder," Lando said. Anakin glared at Rex, who looked down sheepishly.

"You were going to be bet Black Thunder?" Anakin questioned.

"I still can't believe you name all your speeders," Rex countered, avoiding Anakin's question.

"I love black thunder," Anakin said.

"You love all your speeders," Rex replied.

"So, I came down here for nothing then?" Anakin asked.

"Not for nothing. I think Jenna could use her Daddy right now. I was going to deal out and go talk to her, but since you're here, it might be best if you do," Riley replied.

"Uh oh," Anakin said, as he spotted his youngest daughter at the next table, arm wrestling some of Rex's rookie troops that had not yet been warned that they wouldn't be able to beat her. Rex could have told them, but it was much too enjoyable for him to watch Jenna beat them one after another, bruising each of their fragile egos.

"Man, that girl of yours is strong. I've never seen anything like it, except from you or her twin, maybe," Rex mentioned.

"And you won't. Jayden's powers manifest themselves in a mystical form like mine. But Jenna's have chosen to manifest in a more physical version. And…because she's a girl, it can be very difficult to deal with sometimes," Anakin replied, as he walked toward her. The Rookies were in awe that they couldn't defeat her.

"Care if I try to beat you?" Anakin asked, as he sat down across for her.

"You're the only one that can," she replied.

"Yeah, but you're the only one that makes me work for it," he replied, as he put his elbow on the table.

"I don't want to talk about it," Jenna warned, as she put her elbow on the table. He shrugged.

"That's fine. This is just a friendly little match," he replied, as they started arm wrestling. She tried with all her might, but she couldn't beat her father and finally ceased with a sigh. Anakin shook his arm.

"Man, you're getting really good. You're going to beat me one of these days," he said.

"Great, then I'll be an even bigger freak," Jenna replied.

"You are not a freak," Anakin insisted sternly.

"Whatever. When boys look at Leia and Kimberly, they get all shy and goofy. When they see me, they run the other way," she said.

"You're just a little more intimidating to them. That's not all bad either. With Leia and Kimberly, I have to weed through all the scoundrels. With you, only the good ones will get through, because you don't put up with any poodoo and you have the muscle to back it up," Anakin said.

"You don't have to worry about boys, Dad. They don't look at me like they do Leia and Kimberly. I'm not pretty like them," Jenna said sadly.

"Are you kidding? Jenna, you're beautiful. Just like your mother and sisters," Anakin replied.

"You're just saying that because you're my Dad," Jenna said.

"No, I'm not," he insisted.

"Then why don't boys notice me?" she asked.

"Oh they notice, believe me. I live with this on a daily basis. I have three beautiful daughters and while I know there are good guys out there, there are a million more scoundrels. But…I can't believe I'm saying this," he fretted.

"If you want boys to notice you more, you should go to your mother for help," he said with a smirk.

"She used to love putting all of you girls in little dresses. But you hated them and so she let you wear Jedi pants and tunics like your brothers, because that's what made you happy. But if you go to her, I know that she would love to put you in a dress again," he said. Jenna smiled. Her mother did love to dress them up.

"Okay, I'll talk to her," Jenna replied.

"Good. Don't ever be ashamed of who you are," Anakin said, as he got up and dropped a kiss on her head.

"I'm going to check our position," he said.

~*~

Padme turned off the comm again, having finished her meeting. She had tended to some Senate business, helping Bail out, so that he could spend all this time at Breha's side. As Padme stood up, Jayden walked into their family suite.

"Hi sweetie," Padme said.

"Hey Mom, I don't suppose you've seen Nat anywhere, have you?" he asked.

"No, but isn't she with her parents?" Padme asked, noticing the smudge of grease on his cheek. Not being able to help herself, she licked her thumb and started wiping the smudge away. Jayden tried to pull away.

"Mom…" he complained.

"You've been tinkering with all the scraps of things your father calls ships in the docking bay again, haven't you?" Padme asked knowingly. He smirked.

"You should see Luke, he's a real mess. Anyway, I went to the Organa suite and Bail told me that Natalie got really upset with the way her mother was just giving up. I guess Breha was basically telling her goodbye. I just wondered if maybe she came here," Jayden said.

"No, she didn't. But it sounds like she could use you. When I need a quiet place to think and I happen to be on one of your great grandfather's ships, I always go to the star room," she mentioned. He smiled.

"Thanks Mom," he said.

"Always baby," she replied, noticing the sudden sad look on his face.

"What's bothering you?" she asked.

"It's nothing," he replied.

"Now Jayden, you get the same look on your face that your father does when he's brooding about something," Padme said.

"It's just…Nat's losing her mother and it seems like someone's always trying to take you from us too. Dad worries about you constantly…we all do," Jayden said.

"Sweetie…I'm right here and your father is never going to let anyone tear our family apart," Padme assured him.

"But Sifo-Dyas is still out there," he replied.

"It doesn't matter. Love will always be more powerful than the evil ways of that sick, twisted man. You must always believe in the power of love," Padme told him. Jayden nodded.

"Now, go find your girlfriend. I bet she could use a shoulder to cry on," Padme told him. He nodded.

"Thanks Mom," he replied, as he left. As he did, the Holocom chimed and Padme opened the channel. Rush appeared on the screen.

"Oh, hello Rush," she greeted. Rush smiled.

"Hello Padme. As always, you are a vision of beauty," he replied.

"Rush," Padme warned.

"I apologize, but I will always admire you from afar," he fawned.

"That's kind of you to say. May I ask why you've called?" she questioned.

"Well, it took some doing, but I dug up everything I possibly could find on the Alleman family. If you're ready, I'll transmit the files to your datapad," Rush answered.

"Please. Thank you for doing the leg work for me," Padme replied.

"It was my pleasure," he said.

"I received the files. Thank you again," Padme replied a few moments later.

"Of course. I hope it helps," Rush said, as he gazed longingly at her. Padme felt uneasy under his stare.

"Well, I should get back to work. Thank you again for your help," Padme said quickly, as she cut the transmission. She picked up the datapad and plopped down on the sofa. She suddenly shivered and unbeknownst to her, Sifo-Dyas' disembodied spirit shimmered to life behind her. She was alone at last. It was so rare, he had learned. Her husband, children, various family member, friends, or colleagues were always around her. But now, he sensed they were all momentarily occupied. He had haunted her for the last two years in secret, both in this form, watching her without her knowledge and by using Rush Clovis, the pitiful man, to be in her proximity at work. And she continued fascinate him, as always. Finally, he would reveal himself to her in his disembodied form anyway and remind her that he was still very much waiting to claim her.

He leaned down and brought his ghostly lips to her ear.

"You'll not evade my grasp forever, Padmia," he hissed. Padme was suddenly cold all over and paralyzed with fear.

"You will be mine when the time is right," he hissed. Padme leapt up and whipped around. She screamed and her hand flew over her mouth in horror, as she witnessed the manifestation of his spirit form.

"You will be my Queen," he said, as he stepped closer. She backed away.

"No…this isn't possible!" she cried.

"Oh it is. I am in this disembodied form because of your husband and I will have my revenge on him!" Sifo-Dyas screamed.

"I will suck all the power from him and take it for my own. Then, you'll be mine once his lifeless corpse is lying at your feet!" Sifo hissed, as he continued toward her and she continued to back away.

"No…" Padme cried.

"You will never escape me," he hissed, as he backed her against the wall, trapping her.

"I am always watching you. I can always see you…" he threatened, as he brought his ghostly lips to her neck and she felt his iciness spread all over her body.

"I can't wait to feel your exquisite flesh against mine. I can't wait to take you…to make you mine, after I make sure Anakin can no longer stop me," Sifo-Dyas hissed. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she sobbed almost uncontrollably

"Anakin…" she cried out to him, both out loud and in her mind. He snarled, sensing that Anakin was already on his way.

"I will kill him. Maybe not today…but I will kill him and anyone that stands in my way of getting what I want. Your husband's powers will be mine, you will be my Queen, and I will rule the galaxy," he hissed, as he faded away in an icy gust of wind. Padme's heart raced and her breathing became ragged. Panic took over and her eyes rolled back, as she crumpled to the floor…


	3. Part 3 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 3! Thanks for all the amazing reviews, as always. Enjoy this next installment and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 3/?

Jayden walked into the star room and found his girlfriend on one of the cushions. She was gazing up at the star display and looked a little more relaxed than he expected, despite the dried tear tracks on her face. The star room was a very peaceful place. It was an expensive luxury item that both his great grandfather and father always made sure were present on any of their large family cruisers.

"The stars are beautiful, but you're still the prettiest one out of all of them all," he said, as he sat down beside her. She smirked.

"If any boy other than you fed me a corny line like that, I'd probably laugh in his face," Natalie joked.

"Yes, but I'm quite charming, I've been told and I did attend the Anakin Skywalker school of corny pick up lines," Jayden joked back, making her giggle.

"Yes, and it's your charm that saves you. That and your sexy good looks. So instead of those corny lines making me want to punch you, they make me want to do this," she replied, as she kissed him. He responded instantly, kissing her as deeply and passionately as he could. He loved her with all his heart and soul and that combined with his raging fifteen-year-old hormones caused him to have to consciously pull himself away. While his emotions often ruled him, his need to take care of her ruled over all else.

"Talk to me. Your Dad said you ran out of your Mom's room crying," Jayden said.

"I'd rather not talk right now," she replied, as she kissed him again. Jayden kissed her for a long moment, moving his lips tenderly over hers. He felt her soon go limp in his arms, as he knew she would and slowly broke the kiss. As he held her, sobs racked her shoulders and she cried against his chest.

"She's…just giving up! I…I don't want her to die," Natalie sobbed, as he gently rocked her.

"I know Nat and my parents are going to do everything they can to make sure she doesn't. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere," he promised, as he held her and let her cry.

~*~

Anakin sprinted down the corridor, as he exited the lift on the residential floor of the ship. Only moments ago, he'd been in the cockpit with Ferus, checking their position, when he'd felt an intense spike of fear and panic coming from Padme, as she called out to him. And when he entered their living quarters, he spotted her lying crumpled on the floor by the far wall.

"Padme!" he cried, as he knelt down and scooped he petite body into his arms. He wasn't surprised to see his grandfather walk through the door, as he carried her to the sofa. He had been meditating and felt Padme's stab of fear through the Force too. Dooku was always very attuned to the people he loved and so when he felt Padme's panic, he had come quickly, bringing a confused Elana with him. But she now understood why.

"Angel…wake up," Anakin pleaded, practically panicking himself.

"Oh my, I'll get a cold compress. Ani, go get the med droid," Elana said, as she hurried to the kitchen.

"We won't need the med droid, darling. The reason for Padme's collapse is not health related," Yan stated. Elana got a cold cloth, not questioning her husband, for she knew that he knew best.

"What do you mean?" Anakin asked, as Elana placed the cool cloth on Padme's forehead. He waited for his grandfather to answer, as the elder Jedi probed the Force to confirm what he already suspected.

"He was here," Yan stated.

"Who?" Anakin asked, as Yan looked at him.

"You mean Sifo-Dyas? How is that even possible?" Anakin questioned.

"He can't get into her dreams anymore, because you're always helping her to shield her mind, so he has probably been observing her in Force spirit form. He probably has been for the last two years and finally chose to reveal himself to her now," Yan explained.

"Wait…if he's a Force spirit, doesn't that mean he's dead?" Anakin questioned.

"Not necessarily. After Falleen, most of his body was completely destroyed. Only his brain survived and while it is fully functional, all his soul can cling to right now is a mass of tubes and wires that are keeping his brain alive. It is likely he had discovered how to move among the living in his disembodied form, in which he appears like a Force ghost," Dooku explained.

"How come I've never heard of this kind of thing?" Anakin asked. Dooku smirked.

"There has not been a Sith Lord powerful enough or one that has needed to use this kind of dark Force energy for over a millennia. You killed the last one that could and banished his disembodied form to the depths of Sith hell," Dooku stated.

"_I_ did that?" Anakin questioned. Dooku smirked.

"Well…Anakyn did, but you are him, even if you only remember the parts of the legend that are still in writing sealed away in the archives. Not even Sifo-Dyas knows the rest or is completely conscious of why he seeks Padme," Dooku explained.

"What do you mean it's not written? I don't understand," Anakin replied.

"The Legend of the Chosen One ends with Anakyn defeating his Aunt, the Dark Side of the Force, even after surrendering his immortality. His love for Padmia gave him the will and strength. It cost him his life, but the Light Side of the Force saw fit to revive her son, even though his immortality was lost forever. The Legend ends with Anakyn and Padmia ascending to the Throne of Naboo as its rulers…but that is not where the Legend ends, far from it, in fact," Dooku said.

"Then why isn't the rest of it in the sealed Archive files?" Anakin asked.

"Some ten thousand years ago, the Grand Master at the time felt the information was far too sensitive to remain in writing. Perhaps he foresaw a Jedi turned Sith getting his hands on those sensitive files, much like we know Sifo-Dyas did. So, he left the part of the legend we know, that Sifo-Dyas knows, in tact and memorized the rest, before destroying it. Since that day, that part of the legend has only been passed down by word of mouth. Right now, Master Yoda and I are the only ones that know of it. It was passed to Yoda and then to me. Now, I soon must pass it someone else in our family,"

Dooku explained.

"Do me a favor…don't pick me," Anakin bit back. Dooku put his hand on his grandson's shoulder.

"I know it's difficult to take in, but you must believe in your significance…and Padme's," Dooku urged. Anakin shook his head and looked to his unconscious wife.

"What is so vital in this legend that the evidence had to be destroyed?" Anakin asked. Dooku smirked.

"I thought you didn't want to know," Dooku replied.

"You're right…I don't. I just want that monster to leave her alone," Anakin said.

"As do I. Padme is so good. She doesn't deserve to have that evil man stalk her like this," Elana spat in anguish.

"He won't stop, because he's obsessed with her and hungry for the power he knows she can give him access to," Yan warned them. Anakin turned his stormy blue eyes back to his grandfather again.

"How come I didn't sense him?" Anakin asked.

"He has hidden his presence well, since his form is so elusive. Had I not been meditating, I may not have sensed him myself," Dooku replied. Anakin's piercing sapphire eyes darted around the room.

"Where are you? Show yourself to me now!" Anakin called.

"He won't, until he's ready to show himself to you. Padme's fear of him will feed the dark energy it takes to manifest himself in this form, for it is by no means easy for him. But it is getting easier now and he will appear more, I am afraid," Dooku said.

"You leave her alone, do you hear me?!" Anakin screamed into the room.

"Stay away from her!" Anakin cried.

"Calm down. Your anger and agitation only delights him," Dooku warned. Anakin sighed and heard Padme moan.

"Ani…she's coming around," Elana said. He was at her side in an instant. He took her hand and caressed her face, as her brown eyes fluttered open.

"Ani…" she squeaked.

"I'm here angel," he assured her.

"Oh Ani…why won't he leave me alone?" Padme cried, as she broken down in her husband's arms. And Anakin had to quell his growing anger at Sifo-Dyas like never before and he painstakingly released his rage into the Force. It was exactly what the Sith wanted. If he lost control of his anger, then Sifo-Dyas would win. And tormenting his angel was the fastest, easiest way to ignite his wrath. Add to that, Sifo-Dyas' obsession with her had gone beyond anything he had imagined. He now knew that the psychotic Sith would stop at nothing to possess her. But that would only make Anakin more determined to protect her from his evil. He pulled back and held her beautiful face in his hands.

"I will fight him to my dying breath and I will never let him get you, no matter what he tries," Anakin promised.

"He said he's always watching me," she said, choking back a sob.

"He said he can always see me," she cried.

"He said that to scare you, angel. He's too much of a coward to risk me seeing him," Anakin said, calling it into the room in case the Sith was listening. He sighed then and gently kissed her lips.

"Have faith in my love. No matter what, I'll protect you and I'll do my best to keep him from scaring you," Anakin said. Padme took a deep breath.

"I need to stop letting him scare me like this. I won't let him control me like this," Padme said with determination. It made him smile. She was the strongest woman he knew.

"I love you," he said.

"I know, that's why he won't win," she replied, as she hugged him.

"What's going on?" Riley asked, as he entered.

"I'm fine Daddy," Padme winced, knowing her father was going to hit the ceiling when he found out. She had been hoping to avoid telling him, in hopes that it had been just a one time thing. But there would be none of that since Sifo-Dyas had promised to stalk her.

"Sweetness, what happened?" he asked, growing more concerned.

"I just collapsed for a minute, but I'm fine. I promise," Padme assured him.

"You collapsed?! What do you mean?" Riley cried, as he knelt down beside her.

"It wasn't for medical reasons. I guess it was more of a panic attack," Padme tried to explain.

"Panic attack?" Riley asked.

"Yes…it seems our nemesis has found a way to stalk Padme in spirit form now," Dooku explained.

"What? I thought that bastard can't haunt her dreams anymore," Riley exclaimed.

"He can't, but his spirit is currently disembodied and we found out today that he has learned to travel among the living in a form that is very similar to that of a Force ghost. The shock and panic overwhelmed her and she fainted," Dooku explained gently.

"Damn that sick bastard! So, he can just pop in here and stalk my baby girl any time he damn well pleases?!" Riley cried angrily.

"Daddy…calm down. I'm not going to let him scare me like that again," Padme assured him.

"He has yet to show himself in anyone else's presence, especially Anakin's, but I fear he may grow bolder and bolder over time. I won't lie to you sweetheart. You must be careful. He will attempt to wear down your resolve," Dooku said.

"I won't let him. I have too many people that love and support me. Before he intruded in my life, I was about to go visit my ill best friend and he's certainly not going to stop me from doing that," Padme said with determination.

"Don't you think you should rest?" Riley suggested.

"I'm fine Daddy and I'm not going to lay here like a helpless, scared little girl, certainly not because of some desperate, half dead psycho that has a sick obsession with me," Padme argued. Riley smirked and shook his head.

"You always gotta be a pistol, don't you sweetness," Riley said. Anakin opened his mouth to comment, but she stopped him.

"Don't answer that," she warned, making him chuckle and smile sheepishly.

"Come on angel, I'll take you to see Breha," Anakin said.

"And I'll tag along, if you don't mind," Riley added, as they left. Elana gazed at her husband and sighed.

"Oh Yan…" she said, as he held her close.

"Don't worry my love, Sifo-Dyas will not destroy this family if I have anything to do with it," Yan promised. And he would be meditating heavily on the events that had just occurred later. With any luck, he would use his extensive experience to confront Sifo-Dyas himself…

~*~

"Hey…how far out are we?" Serra asked her husband, who sat in the co-pilot chair.

"A couple hours," Ferus answered, as he took her hand.

"Master, have you seen my Dad?" Kimberly asked.

"No, I haven't," Serra replied.

"He was in here with me and then he ran out of here like a womp bat out of Sith hell a few minutes ago. He didn't say why," Ferus told her.

"Thanks Master, I'm going to go find my brothers," Kimberly said.

"Kim, did you feel something?" Serra asked. She nodded.

"It was something dark around Mom. I felt her fear and panic. I guess the Sith can reach us even when we're in hyperspace," Kimberly said sadly, as he she left. Ferus sighed.

"How is that even possible? Wasn't she asleep the last time he came to her?" Ferus asked.

"Yes, but knowing that monster, he's found another way to torment her. I don't know how Padme's resolve remains so strong sometimes," Serra said.

"Because she has a lot of people that love her, just like you do as well," Ferus replied, as he kissed her softly.

~*~

Natalie sniffed and pulled back, as she looked up at him. He gently wiped some of her tears away.

"I seem to have been doing that a lot lately," she mentioned.

"Doing what?" he asked.

"Crying all over you," she replied. He smiled.

"Well, this is where I belong. Here, holding you in my arms when you need me most," he replied. She smiled.

"Sometimes, I think you're too good to be true, Jayden Skywalker," she replied, as she cuddled against his chest. He smiled.

"That's my line to you, my Princess," he insisted.

"And what makes you say that?" she asked.

"It was no coincidence that my Dad found you when you were a baby. There are no coincidences; only the Will of the Force that he found you, especially only two days after I was born. He said you weren't more than a few days old yourself and you couldn't have been in that alleyway for very long before he found you or you wouldn't have survived. Someone wanted him to find you," Jayden told her. Anakin had told them the story many times and the mystical nature around it had never faded. And it always made Natalie wonder who had abandoned her and why…

~*~

_Flashback…_

_Padme hummed softly, as Jayden's eyes slowly drifted closed. Jenna slept peacefully already in the bassinet and Padme prepared to place her brother next to her. They had just arrived home from Tatooine late last night and Anakin had left only for a few hours to check a lead he had received from a credible source about some Imperial Underground activity. She saw his speeder slowly land and she waited patiently, as he hopped out of the speeder. But she was confused when he knelt down and lifted a tiny bundle from the passenger seat. And she gasped, as she realized what was in his arms. _

"_Ani…what's going on?" she asked, as she peered down at the infant, who was wrapped snugly in her husband's cloak. _

"_I found her," Anakin said. _

"_You found her? Where?" Padme asked. _

"_Abandoned in an alleyway," Anakin replied, as the tiny baby began to fuss._

"_Oh my…Threepio, warm a bottle quickly," Padme called. _

"_Yes Miss Padme," Threepio obeyed, as he tottered to the kitchen._

"_Here, I'll switch you," Anakin said, as he took his infant son and Padme took the baby girl in her arms. _

"_Oh, who would abandon such a beautiful, sweet baby?" Padme cooed to her, as her motherly instincts kicked into full gear. _

"_I don't know, but she sure has caught someone else's attention," Anakin said, nodding to Jayden, who's eyes were now wide awake with wonder, as he stared at the other infant. And suddenly, the infant girl stopped crying as well, somehow having felt Jayden's stare. It should not have been possible for two infants to recognize each other so distinctly. But Anakin felt the magical, mystical tendrils of the Force binding them together. And that's when he knew that it had not been by accident that he had found her. He and Padme gazed at each other knowingly. _

"_Here you are Miss Padme," Threepio said, as he brought the bottle to her. Padme sat down and put the nipple to the baby's lips. She latched onto it and began drinking hungrily. _

"_She's beautiful, just like ours," Padme mentioned. Anakin nodded._

"_I know. I was thinking how she'd be the perfect little Alderaanian Princess," Anakin mentioned. Happy tears welled in Padme's eyes._

"_She will make Bail and Breha so happy," Padme said, as Anakin sat beside her._

~*~

And they had been nearly inseparable since then, as had Jenna too, for the three of them had always been very close. While Jayden and Natalie had always been a more romantic pair, Jenna and Natalie were best friends in the truest form.

"Hey lovebirds, thought I'd find you here," Jenna said, as she came into the room.

"Hey Jen," Natalie said.

"Grandpa just told me that Mom and Dad are going to visit your Mom, so I thought you both might like to come too," she said. Natalie nodded, feeling bad about storming out on her father earlier.

"I would. Thanks," Natalie replied.

"Hey, did you feel something earlier? It felt like Mom was scared or something. I was going to go to her, but Nat needed me and I felt Dad going to her," Jayden told his twin.

"Kim and I felt it too. She felt it more strongly, I think," Jenna replied, as their eyes locked. They had always known their Mother to be a strong woman and there were only a few things or people rather that frightened her so deeply.

"We'd better talk to Dad," Jayden stated. Jenna nodded.

"Kim went to find Luke," Jenna replied.

"Where's Leia?" he asked. Jenna shrugged.

"Probably on the comm with Jake again. I haven't seen her. I was down by the Sabaac tables all day," Jenna said.

"Were you arm wrestling the poor rookie Troopers again?" Natalie questioned. Jenna smirked.

"It's fun. Their poor egos are so fragile too. Uncle Rex and I get a huge kick out of it. Besides, I was playing holo games with Marc, but he's a sore loser," Jenna complained. Nat gave her another look.

Did you beat on him again?" she questioned, a disapproving tone dripping from her voice.

"It was just a punch in the arm. He's fine and it's his fault anyway. As soon as Kim walked into the room, I ceased to exist, so I had to do something to get his attention," Jenna said, as they entered the corridor.

"Aww…he has a crush on Kim," Natalie gushed.

"Ugh…please, I think I feel my lunch coming back up," Jenna groaned.

"Oh Jen, if you like him, then you should do something to get his attention," Natalie told her.

"Yeah and she doesn't mean punching him," Jayden quipped, earning him a glare from his twin.

"Watch it Jay and I've already decided to enlist Mom's help when everything calms down. I guess I could soften my image a bit," Jenna admitted. Jayden snorted in amusement, but wisely kept his mouth shut.

"Oh, a makeover, you have to let me help," Natalie replied. Jenna groaned.

"Fine, but you and Mom better not make a big deal about this," Jenna warned.

"Don't worry, it will be fine and then Marcus will notice you, ask you out, and you both can double date with Jay and me," Natalie chirped cheerfully.

"No way," Jenna said.

"Forget that," Jayden said simultaneously with his twin.

"It's settled then," Natalie decided. Neither Jayden nor Jenna argued with the Princess. If there was one person that could make Jenna behave and keep her in line, other than her parents, it was Natalie and naturally, it only took her one pretty stare and batting of her eyes to bend Jayden to her will. No one could ever guess that the petite Princess of Alderaan could keep reign on the most powerful pair of Jedi twins in the galaxy.


	4. Part 4 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 4! Thanks for all the amazing reviews. Enjoy this next installment and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 4/?

Adam sighed deeply, as the comm screen went dark. He had once again lied to his father convincingly that his relationship with the Queen was strictly professional, despite his attempts to woo her. Xalazar was extremely angry with his failure and he had been verbally raked over the coals so to speak. Had he been before his father in person, he would have received a good beating, courtesy of his brother and his goons. His father had told him that he had better make progress with the Queen during this trip and prey on her fragile emotional state during the family crisis. Landrey, of course, had informed his father of their current journey to Alderaan like a good soldier. His father was ready to replace him with another agent, but he would be damned if he let one of his father's cold hearted killers near his Pooja. He had to come clean to her before they left Alderaan and he could only hope that she would still love him, much less want him. He ran a hand over his face and stood up, before going back into the cabin.

He entered the dimly lit bedroom where his beloved slept peacefully. She was so beautiful and he felt another pang of guilt stab his heart. She deserved far better than him. Perhaps she would be better off without him.

"Hey…where did you go?" she asked sleepily, as she stirred. The last thing she remembered was being spooned tightly against him after a passionate session of lovemaking.

"I was just checking our position," he replied. That wasn't a lie. He really had gone to check their position when Landrey had patched his father through to the comm on the ship.

"We're about two hours out," Adam added. She smiled, as she covered her body with the sheet and sat up on her elbows.

"Then you should come back to bed," she suggested. He smirked, as he removed his shirt and sat down on the bed beside her. He caressed her face.

"I love you," she said, as her eyes sparkled with love.

"And I love you, more than you know," he replied. She smirked.

"Then get into bed and show me," she replied saucily. He smiled, as he lowered his lips to her. Pooja hummed sweetly into his kiss and pulled him into bed, as passion took hold once again.

~*~

Xalazar De'reux took a long drag on his death stick, as his beautiful and significantly younger wife entered his office with a tray. On it was a couple of shot glasses and an expensive bottle of Corellian scotch. Anya was his second wife and mother to Devan and Adam both. Devan was as cruel and evil as her husband and she would never dare to cross them. Xalazar's first wife, mother to his late daughter Kendra, had done so by running off. Xalazar's goons had tracked her down and slit her throat for it. Devan had started out an innocent child, but his father had quickly molded his first son into a heartless monster in his own image. Meanwhile, his youngest son Adam had grown up much of his childhood with her as his only caregiver. Xalazar was a ruthless business man and had often been gone months at a time for many years during Adam's young life. He and Devan had enacted terrible cruelties as the De'reux Empire expanded far beyond Corellia. And for that, she had been glad, for Adam had not grown up to be like her eldest son and his father. Unfortunately, Anya feared that one day, Xalazar would make her pay with her life for raising him as she had. Adam wasn't evil and it was plainly clear. It was only a matter of time before Xalazar started blaming her for it. And it scared Anya deeply. She put on a brave front all the time, but inside, she had always been terrified. She was a long way from the naïve young woman whom Xalazar had charmed into his bed by romancing her with fine wines, lavish gifts, and extravagant vacations. He had given her everything and she had married him in a heartbeat. And that's when the invisible chains had snapped around her and trapped her by his side for the rest of her life. She would not make it out of this family alive…no one did. After their marriage, Xalazar had shown his true colors. She was his wife and she obeyed him to the letter. He told her horror stories about his first wife and the things he had done to her for stepping out of line. He had beaten her, raped her, let his men beat and rape her, and terrorized her on a daily basis for being a strong, outspoken woman. So Anya had always been the dutiful wife, following her husband's every order. But even that was not always enough to escape his wrath, at least not in the last four years and she had the bruises to prove it. Adam had always stood up to his father for her, despite any lashings that would come his way. And it had been hell the last few years without her sweet baby boy. She loved her little Adam more than anything and was secretly proud of the good man that she knew he was. She just wished he trusted her enough to tell her what was really going on, for she was deeply frightened that Xalazar was plotting to kill him for failing to carry out his orders.

She set the tray down and watched her husband smoke his death stick, while Devan sat across from him, puffing on his own.

"The little puss worm obviously can't handle the job. He should have had the pretty little Queen eating out of his hand a long time ago. Let me go. I'll teach him a lesson he'll never forget and I'll show him how a real man operates when I put the little Queen in her place, before I kill her, of course," Devan said.

"He's not telling us everything. He's hiding something and he will be punished severally for his failure and deception," Xalazar stated, as he put his death stick out and poured a drink. Anya was horrified to hear this.

"Darling, I'm sure Adam is doing his best. He wouldn't deceive us," Anya tried to reason. And she would pay for it. He violently knocked the tray off his desk and shoved her into the wall.

"He is weak and it is your fault! If he has disobeyed my orders, then you'll both pay!" Xalazar screamed. She yelped in pain, as he backhanded her, before shoving her toward the door.

"I'll deal with you more later," he promised, before stepping away and looking at them both.

"Pack your things, both of you. We're going to Alderaan," Xalazar announced.

~*~

Breha stirred from her sleep and weakly opened her eyes. Someone was holding her hand, but it was not Bail. By the texture of the person's hand, she could tell it was a woman. She meekly turned her head and her eyes focused on the face of her dearest friend. She managed a weak smile. She loved her wonderful friend. From the day they had met, when Padme was just a young aide to Senator Palpatine, fresh off a double term as Naboo's Queen, Breha had become fast friends with her. Never had she met a young woman with so much strength and conviction to fight for what was right. Never had she met someone so brave, even in the face of the harshest ridicule and the strongest threats. And she had soon learned of the place that Padme had come from and by knowing Padme, Breha herself had become a stronger woman. But sadly, it didn't seem that she would be strong enough to beat this illness. She had accepted it and now she would console her sad best friend.

"Hi," Padme said softly, as she squeezed her hand.

"Padme," Breha said weakly, as she tried in vain to sit up. But Padme stopped her.

"Just rest. I just wanted to come see how you were doing. We didn't mean to disturb you," Padme replied. Breha noticed Anakin behind her.

"The two of you could never disturb me. You know I love seeing you both. And I haven't had the change to properly say goodbye to you yet," Breha choked. Padme felt her heart breaking.

"Breha…you can't give up. Anakin and I are almost certain we can find a cure. We just need a little more time. You just have to hang on for a little longer," Padme pleaded.

"I…I don't know if I can, Padme. But it's okay. I've…I've had a good life. And I know Jayden will take good care of my little Natalie. But I need the two of you to watch after Bail for me," Breha rasped.

"You're going to do that yourself. Anakin and I believe we can find who or what has made you sick all these years and we believe we can find a cure. You just have to hang on a little longer," Padme pleaded.

"You all…must let me go and move on with your lives. Please…I've accepted my fate," Breha insisted.

"Breha…please…we suspect foul play and we can bring those responsible to justice. Anakin and I just need a little more time. Hold on just a little longer…for Bail and Natalie. They don't deserve to lose you if we can prevent it. Please…I know you're so very tired, but hold on just a while longer," Padme pleaded. Breha managed a weak smile, as she coughed hoarsely.

"You always have been very convincing. I will try," Breha promised. Padme smiled and Bail squeezed his wife's hand.

"Thank you," he said gratefully. Padme smiled in response.

"Being able to do whatever I can for you and Natalie is all the thanks I need," Padme replied, as she rose.

"The Queen needs her rest," the med droid chirped.

"We should be landing soon," Anakin informed. Bail nodded, as Anakin led Padme out.

"How is she?" Riley asked, as he waited outside.

"She's weak, but she's hanging on. We don't have a lot of time, I fear," Padme fretted.

"Don't worry sweetness, the Alleman family's dirty laundry is about to be aired as soon as we get a crack at them. And if there's a guilty party to be had, we'll find them," Riley promised.

"Your Dad is right. If our suspects so much as sneeze, we'll know about it once we begin investigating," Anakin added. Padme nodded.

"We better get ready then. We'll be landing soon," Padme suggested, as they headed back to their quarters.

~*~

As their large cruiser docked in the palace's main hanger, the ramp dropped and several medics boarded the ship. Breha was transferred to a gurney and was slowly wheeled down the ramp by the palace medical staff, with Bail and Natalie close behind. To no one's surprise, the Alleman family waited nearby. Shefan Alleman looked and dressed the part of his official title, which was Duke of Aldera. He stood at six feet one inch tall and wore formal attire, including a high collar tunic, buttoned down the side with golden buttons, a gold waist sash, black slacks, and boots, complete with a black and gold cape. It was as flashy and gaudy as anything Padme had ever seen. His hair was slicked back neatly, but thanks to an overabundance of hair oil, it looked greasy and highlighted what otherwise would be subtle streaks of gray. He had dark eyes, a pointed nose, and very thin face that founded out at his chin, which had a dimple in the center. And Padme could see a glint of victory in his eyes, as Breha was wheeled to the palace infirmary. Next to him stood his wife, whom made no attempt to hide her delight in seeing Breha so gravely ill. She was about fifteen years younger than her sixty-year-old husband, making her around Padme's age. She had a sophisticated beauty that was not youthful and alluring like Padme's, but she was very attractive none the less. She had raven hair and very ivory skin, which made for a very stark contrast. She was also very tall and painfully thin, only about two inches shorter than her husband, with raven colored eyes that were as cold as the darkest black hole. She wore a maroon colored dress with flashy, gaudy jewelry and accessories. She even had the gall to wear a golden, jewel encrusted tiara atop her head and Padme couldn't wait for the opportunity to knock the Duchess down a peg. Finally, next to his mother, stood 19-year-old Shane Alleman. He was tall, like his parents, and had a mop of raven hair like his parents, and his mother's cold abyss like eyes. His facial features were a mixture of traits from his parents. He wore formal attire similar to his father's with gold and green accents and detail. He was handsome enough, but Padme could see disaster in Alderaan's future if he was allowed to sit on the throne with his parents as his council.

"Prince Organa, you have our family's deepest condolences," Shefan said with fake pleasantry. Natalie responded, before Bail could.

"My Mother isn't dead yet." Natalie snapped. Bail put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's all right sweetheart. Go be with your Mother and I'll join you soon," Bail promised. Natalie glared at the Duke and Duchess, before stalking off toward the medical wing. Jayden saw her go, as he came down the ramp with his siblings and was unnerved to see Shane Alleman follow her.

"Dad," he started, intending to tell his Father that he needed to go after her. But Anakin already knew.

"Go," he prodded with a smirk. And as usual, Jenna followed her twin, wanting in on any possible action. Anakin looked to Shefan and could already sense his nervousness, as they and their extended family disembarked from the ship. He hadn't been expecting Jedi, but he also sensed nervousness from him concerning Padme. He wasn't really surprised. Padme was a formidable woman, both in person and in the political arena. Shefan knew she could see right through him and his wife and he also knew how highly respected she was to Alderaan's parliament. Still, he faked a brave front, as they approached.

"Senator Amidala…what an unexpected, yet pleasant surprise. I didn't know you or your family was coming. It's been years," Shefan said smoothly.

"Breha is a dear friend to our family and it's Senator Skywalker now and has been for many years," Padme responded.

"Of course, forgive my blunder. It's been so long since I last saw you. I must say, you haven't changed at all. Time has been very kind to you. It is an honor to host you and your family," Shefan said with more fake pleasantry. But his wife made no attempt to hide her dislike for Padme. She was used to being the center of attention and she didn't appreciate someone of Padme's stature and beauty soaking up that attention, which was usually directed toward her.

"You remember my wife Elsa," he added. Padme smirked at the other woman, further unnerving her. She remembered how obnoxious and conniving Elsa usually was, according to Breha.

"Of course. This is my husband, Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker," Padme replied.

"Yes…Master Jedi, your reputation precedes you. It is an honor," Shefan lied. Elsa smirked back at Padme, as her eyes traveled appreciatively over Anakin.

"Quite and you're even more handsome in person than on the Holonet. I've always been an admirer from afar, Master Jedi. I am delighted to finally meet such an amazing man," Elsa purred, as she raised her hand, expecting him to kiss the back of it. Luke wrinkled his nose and looked at his sisters, who had equal looks of disgust. Anakin raised an eyebrow.

"That's kind of you to say, Duchess, but I assure you that I am a person, just like anyone else," Anakin replied.

"So humble too. You must have to beat all kinds of women off him with a stick, Senator. I know if I wasn't a married woman myself, I'd certainly make a play for him. How does a woman like you keep such a desirable man like him all to yourself?" Elsa asked, glaring at Padme smugly, proud that she had just thoroughly insulted the beautiful, revered Padme Skywalker. Elsa's smugness quickly melted though, thanks to Anakin. He had never nor ever would let such a blatant insult against his wife go and he still ignored Elsa's hand, as she held it up to him.

"She doesn't have to worry about me wanting any others, for the angel next to me is the only woman I have eyes for," Anakin said, gazing icily at the woman, as he raised Padme's hand to his lips instead. Elsa frowned and lowered her hand in embarrassment, as Luke, Leia, and Kimberly snickered in amusement.

"How lovely," Elsa said quickly, as she turned to her staff.

"I've wasted enough time here. There's work to be done," Elsa said, storming off, with her staff following closely behind the high maintenance Duchess.

"I apologize for my wife's antics. She is eccentric and a bit spoiled, but I love her anyway," Shefan said, also embarrassed.

"Please allow my staff to escort you all to the guest wing and then perhaps we can share more introductions at dinner in the banquet hall this evening," he suggested. Anakin smirked. A group dinner was perfect. They would have access to everyone of prominence in the palace, the entire staff, and ample opportunity for any of them to slip off and investigate without being noticed. Shefan Alleman was either a fool or overconfident that they would find nothing and Anakin guessed it was the latter.

"Dinner sounds perfect," Padme responded.

"Excellent. I shall see all of you in the banquet hall in two hours," Shefan announced, as they were led to the guest wing of the palace.

~*~

"Princess Natalie…wait!" Shane called. Natalie turned and glared at the older boy.

"Come to gloat about how you'll soon be King?" Natalie snapped.

"Princess…I've never clamored for the crown. It's my parents that have advocated for my placement on the Throne to parliament. I only hope you accept my apologies on behalf of my family," Shane said smoothly. Natalie scoffed.

"Yeah, your parents seem really torn up about my Mother's failing health," Natalie said sarcastically. Shane chuckled and she glared at him.

"What's so funny?" she demanded.

"Nothing…you've just grown up so much since I saw you a couple years ago. When I first saw you again, I couldn't believe how beautiful you've grown," he replied. She shook her head.

"Nice try, but even if I didn't have a wonderful boyfriend already, your attempt to charm me wouldn't work," Natalie replied.

"Your boyfriend is a very lucky boy," Shane mentioned.

"Yes…yes I am," Jayden said, as he and Jenna arrived. Jayden slid his arm around Natalie's waist and gave Shane the trademark Skywalker smirk.

"It's wonderful to meet the lucky young man that has captured Princess Natalie's heart. I am Shane Alleman, son of the Duke and Duchess of Aldera," Shane announced, clearly trying to make himself sound superior.

"Jayden…Jayden Skywalker, son of Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker and Senator Padme Skywalker of the Naboo. I'm sure you've heard of my parents too," Jayden retorted. Shane nodded.

"Of course. Your parents' names are infamous here on Alderaan for all they've done for the galaxy," Shane replied.

"So, if your Dad is the Duke, does that make you the Duke Junior?" Jenna asked. Natalie coughed suspiciously to cover a giggle.

"Or are you Duke the Second? Duke number two? Or Duke in Training? Oh, or are you half a Duke?" Jenna asked. Shane glared at her.

"You're ecstatic, but who exactly are you?" he questioning with disdain.

"Jenna Skywalker, twin sister to Jay and best friend to Nat," Jenna answered, giving him a look that clearly told him that he had better watch himself around Natalie.

"Yes, well, I'll leave you to visit your Mother. I'll see all of you at dinner," Shane said quickly, excusing himself.

"Half a Duke?" Natalie asked with amusement. Jenna shrugged.

"Half a man, half a Duke, I thought it was appropriate and funny," Jenna replied.

"It was funny. Rude and inappropriate, but funny," Natalie replied.

"Would you expect anything less from me?" Jenna joked.

"No, I wouldn't know what to do with you if you behaved," Natalie replied. Jayden snorted.

"We'd all die of shock if she behaved for a whole day," Jayden retorted.

"Ha, you just wish you were as fun as me," Jenna retorted back, as they continued on to the medical ward so Natalie could see her Mother before what promised to be a very interesting dinner…


	5. Part 5 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 5! Thanks for all the great reviews. Enjoy this next installment and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 5/?

Count Dooku sat in silence, delved deeply in a meditative state. He had found a quiet vacant room in the residence that had been provided for them and as promised, he searched the Force for answers about recent events. He labored over every event that had led up to now with intense scrutiny. He reached as deeply as he could into his memory to recall every single time he had encountered Sifo-Dyas in their youth and as a young adult. What made Sifo-Dyas able to survive all that he had? Not even some of the most powerful Sith Lords in history had been able to come back from death like he had. It was unfathomable and should have been impossible. It was more than technology…it had to be. To do what Sif0-Dyas had done, not once, but twice, should have been impossible, even using any dark arts they had knowledge of. Not even Master Yoda knew of any radical dark Force magic that could accomplish what Sifo-Dyas had. His soul had somehow clung to a dead corpse until he had been fished out of Naboo's ocean the first time. And the second time, his soul had clung to the mangled, burnt remains after being hit with Anakin's pure Force energy. It shouldn't have been possible, even with the most spectacular technological wonders, to accomplish such a feat twice.

At the same time, many of the things his grandson had done shouldn't have been possible either. Never had a Jedi wielded Force energy in such a physical form; only had one done so in what the Jedi had only believed to be in legend for so long. But everything that had happened so far somehow tied to what had occurred over a millennia ago. And the story of events that proceeded King Paladine's demise was only in the form of memories of a story passed down to him from Yoda and to Yoda from other Jedi Grand Masters that must have foreseen its importance and truth. And the true memories of all that had happened were locked somewhere inside Anakin and Padme's minds, which meant if Sifo-Dyas was to become the great evil that existed in the legend, it was only a matter of time before he learned everything as well. And that was why Yan knew he must discover all he could. He was using everything he had ever learned from Yoda about meditation and he was close…he could feel his evil presence hovering in the realm of the Force. And, as he heard the familiar evil cackle, it seemed that today, Sifo-Dyas would reveal himself, if only to flaunt his new found abilities and how powerful he had become, even in his current state, to the Jedi Grand Master.

"Well, well, you're working very hard just to find me, Master Jedi," Sifo-Dyas mocked, as he appeared to Yan in the stark white plane of his mental vision.

"That's because I will do anything and everything I have to in order to stop you," Dooku said.

"Fool, you cannot stop me. Your powers are limited and insignificant compared to mine. The dark side could have given you the same unimaginable powers, but you chose the light instead and it made you weak," Sifo-Dyas spat.

"Perhaps I'm not as powerful as you, but my grandson is. His power, combined with that of his children, the power of the love he shares with his wife, and the knowledge I seek will eventually spell your end…forever this time," Yan retorted.

"No…none of you will spoil my plans, nor can even Anakin combat the power I will soon possess when I'm whole again. Then I will claim his power for my own and Padme as well. In the meantime, I will enjoy reminding her of my presence," Sifo-Dyas hissed.

"Anakin will never let you take her from him. He will be vigilant in making sure you don't continuously haunt her either," Yan warned. But Sifo-Dyas smirked evilly.

"He will try, but I will not stop until I claim her. The success of my plans hinges on my possession of her and she will be mine. Soon, she'll grow weary and tire of those around her being hurt because of her and she will eventually give in when she is face with either becoming mine or watching her husband, children, and everyone she loves die," Sifo-Dyas growled.

"You will not destroy this family!" Yan roared. Sifo-Dyas only chuckled.

"Watch me," he taunted, as he disappeared. Yan's meditative trance ended and his eyes snapped open. He drew a shaky breath. He had to begin decoding the mysteries of the legend that had been passed down by word of mouth for centuries, but there were things in it that had never truly been fully understood. But the time to discover all Sifo-Dyas secrets had come and he believed the answers were in his diary, which they had acquired years ago on Mustafar, but had never found anyone with the ability to read it. And the chances of that were slim, which meant he would soon need to reveal the rest of the tale to Padme in hopes she could recall any hidden memories from the past…

~*~

"Wow…I know I say this all the time, but you look amazing, angel," Anakin said, as he watched his wife saunter toward him in a lovely, slinky white evening dress that shimmered.

"Well, a woman never tires of hearing things like that from the man she loves," Padme replied, as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her chocolate curls cascaded down her back and he delved his fingers into her silky tresses, as he lowered his lips to hers. It was no mystery to him why so many men, most prevalent being Sifo-Dyas, desired her so much. He desired her endlessly. She was like a drug to him and he was so addicted to her that he could never get enough. She was so beautiful and he would die before he let Sifo-Dyas touch her.

"I'm yours, my love. I always have been and I always will be," she told him,

"I know…I just hate that he can stalk you and that there's little I can do to stop him, because he's basically a ghost right now," Anakin replied. She shook her head.

"It doesn't matter. I'm not going to let him control my life, because I have you and I know that as long as I'm with you, in your arms, he can't hurt me, no matter how much he will try to scare me," Padme said bravely.

"You're right, he can't hurt you, not as long as I stand in his way and he will never get to you. As for him haunting you, I will find a way to put a stop to that too," he promised. She smiled.

"I know, but we should go now. The kids are waiting. What is the plan for tonight?" she asked. He looked at her coyly.

"What makes you think I have a plan?" he questioned.

"I know you like to tell Obi-Wan that you're always winging it, just to mess with him, but I know that you always have some sort of plan up your sleeve," Padme replied. He smirked.

"You know me well, angel. First of all, we're going to go to dinner and you're going to dazzle the entire room with your beauty. Then your father is going to pretend to get very drunk and his doting daughter is going to drag him out of the room so you two can go do a little snooping around while the rest of us feel out the rest of the guests. That's the starting point, anyway," Anakin said.

"It would make sense for my father to make a spectacle of himself. He's very good at it," Padme replied.

"He liked the idea," Anakin said, as they exited the bedroom together, where their kids waited. Leia looked as beautiful as her mother in a pale blue gown, with her hair piled atop her head in a braided twist. Kimberly's gown was a soft pink color and she wore her hair down with a beautiful shimmering headband that matched her dress. Luke and Jayden wore their formal clothes, much the same as their father and Natalie came out next, causing Jayden's mouth to fall open. She wore her hair up atop her head, complete with a glittering tiara and two perfect strands of hair framed her face. Her dress was strapless and white, with a glittering silver design.

"Wow…you look beautiful," Jayden said, once he finally found his voice. Natalie looked down shyly.

"Thanks. Daddy insisted that I wear this dumb tiara," she said with an eye roll.

"You were born to wear it, because you're a true Princess," Jayden told her.

"I won't be, if the Alleman family has anything to say about it," Natalie replied.

"Well, that's why we've got work to do tonight and that includes finding out anything and everything we can about everyone in the palace and everything and I mean everything that goes on. And the Alleman family members are our prime suspects," Padme announced.

"And everyone knows what they're doing," Anakin said, as they all nodded. It was then that he noticed Jenna's absence.

"Where's Jen?" he asked. Natalie sighed.

"She refuses to come out, because I made her put on the dress you picked out," Natalie told Padme.

"Wow…Jenna in a dress. Now that's something you don't see everyday," Jayden commented.

"You all be nice. Jenna's going through something difficult right now. I'll go talk to her and get her out here," Padme said, as she went to Jenna's bedroom door.

"Jenna, sweetie, can I come in?" Padme called.

"I guess," Jenna sighed. Padme smiled and went in, only to find her youngest daughter pouting in the fresher. She was wearing the lavender gown she had picked out and makeup and hairbrushes lay strewn all over the counter.

"Jenna…you look beautiful. What's the matter?" Padme asked.

"I look stupid in this dress and look at all this stuff! I don't know how to use any of this! I don't wear makeup and my hair is always a mess of curls!" Jenna fretted.

"Oh sweetie, I'm sorry, I should be helping you with all this. I helped Leia and Kimberly learn and I wanted to teach you too, but you never seemed interested," Padme said.

"And I'm not…it's just that I want people to think I'm pretty, like you and my sisters," Jenna replied.

"And you are. You're beautiful and you don't need a lot of makeup. You just need a subtle amount to enhance your prevalent natural beauty," Padme said, as she took a brush and lightly applied a small amount of blush powder to her cheeks and then took the mascara to her eyelashes. Then Padme picked up a pink colored lip stick tube.

"Lipstick too?" Jenna complained.

"Trust me sweetie, I know what I'm doing," Padme insisted, as she applied a small amount to her daughter's lips. She then took a hairbrush and began brushing out her daughter's natural blonde curls. She brought part of her hair back and secured it at the back of her head with a matching decorative barrette, letting her natural curls cascade down her back.

"There…you're gorgeous sweetie," Padme said.

"If you say so," Jenna replied. Padme took her hand and led her out into the living area.

"Whoa…look at you baby sister," Luke said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jenna asked defensively. Luke held up his hands.

"It means that you look beautiful," Luke replied.

"Oh…thanks," she said.

"Yeah, I barely recognize you," Jayden joked.

"Watch the wisecracks or you're going to be eating my fist for dinner," Jenna threatened. Jayden snickered.

"Yep, it's still her," he joked again.

"All right, that's enough. Let's go," Padme said, as she put her arm around Jenna.

"You look beautiful, sweetie. I guess my littlest angel is all grown up now too," Anakin said, a bit sadly.

"Thanks Daddy," Jenna replied, as she hugged him and then walked out with Jayden and Natalie, as the others followed suit. Padme put her arms around her husband's waist.

"So, are you ready?" she asked.

"You bet. By the end of tonight, we'll know everything that the Alleman family is involved in, know about everyone employed by them, and know all their dirty, dark secrets," Anakin said.

"And then we find our answers and save Breha," Padme added. He nodded, as they exited, following their kids.

~*~

As they entered the banquet hall, they found that there was quite the turnout to the event, which was exactly what they needed. They immediately drew the room's attention, but they also received a surprise when they spotted their niece, free of the royal face paint required by her Throne, standing with her parents and bodyguard.

"Pooja!" Padme called, as the entire family rushed to greet her. The young Queen was ecstatic to see her sister, parents, cousins, aunt, uncle, and all her grandparents.

"Pooja, I had no idea you were coming. I'm so happy to see you," Padme said.

"She didn't tell us either," Sola said.

"This was sort of an impromptu visit on my part. I…I just had to come and be with everyone right now," Pooja said, giving Natalie a look of deep sympathy.

"Well, we're glad you're here," Anakin replied, as he hugged her.

"Thanks Uncle Ani," she said.

"Poojy!" Will called, as the nine-year-old bounded toward her ahead of their father. She caught him in her arms, as she knelt down.

"Goodness, baby brother, you're getting so big," Pooja said, hugging him tightly. As she stood up, she leapt into her father's arms.

"I've missed you Daddy," Pooja said.

"I've missed you too, my little one, more than you know. You get more beautiful every time I see you, just like your mother," Obi-Wan said.

"There he goes again, flattering us with that Kenobi charm," Sola teased, as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Well, it works, doesn't it?" he asked. Sola grinned.

"Most definitely," she replied, as she kissed his cheek.

"All right, move aside. It's time for the grandparents to get their hugs," Qui-Gon said, as he nudged Obi-Wan, who playfully nudged him back.

"I always have a hug for you, Grandpa Qui," Pooja said.

"How about your Grandpa Riley?" Riley asked, as he held his arms out.

"I could never forget you either, Grandpa Riley," she replied, as they hugged.

"Well, it looks like you've been taking good care of her, Lieutenant," Riley said.

"Yes Sir," Adam responded.

"Good. Guess it's time for us to mingle and for me to pretend to get drunk," Riley whispered.

"_Pretend_ is the operative word, Daddy," Padme reminded.

"Don't worry sweetness, I got it under control," Riley promised, as the mingling began. Pooja and Adam went along with it, tagging along with her parents.

~*~

"Senator Skywalker, I heard you were here," a distinguished looking man said pleasantly.

"_Perfect. The Chairman Speaker of Alderaan's parliament," _she thought to herself. He was the lead Speaker in parliament and very well respected. His opinion went a long way in parliament.

"Gentlemen Speaker Strauss, it is an honor to see you again," Padme stated.

"Oh no, the pleasure is mine, Senator. Please let me express my deepest sympathies. Queen Breha's failing health is weighing heavily on our hearts," he said.

"Yes, she is a dear friend and benevolent ruler," Padme replied.

"Her presence will be missed I do not look forward to the task of replacing her, especially with a boy as ill-prepared as Shane Alleman," Speaker Strauss stated. Padme smiled.

"My husband and I agree with you. You remember Anakin?" Padme asked.

"Of course, it is an honor to see you again, Master Skywalker. You are a very lucky man to have such a beautiful, courageous woman like Senator Skywalker," Speaker Strauss said.

"Thank you Speaker, I am very lucky and my wife is right. The Alleman family does not belong on Alderaan's Throne. Our support is behind Princess Natalie in the event that Queen Breha does in fact pass," Anakin stated.

"Then I will make your support of her a known fact in parliament," he replied.

"That is very gracious of you, Speaker. My husband and I wish to see that Alderaan's future is in the right hands," Padme said.

"As do I, Senator," he replied.

~*~

"That irritating, snippy Senator and her husband are meddling in our affairs! What if they discover what we've done?" Elsa hissed to her husband.

"Calm down, I have not come this far, only to allow that little pixie and her Jedi ruin everything. As we speak, I have ordered my cousin to see that a final dose of the toxin gets administered to the Queen. Then I have ordered him to take his final payment and leave Alderaan forever. I told him to use his credits to disappear, but what he doesn't know is that he shall disappear forever, for I have had the hyper drive tampered with in his ship. When he tries to make the jump to hyperspace, the hyper drive will spark and ignite the fuel tank," the Duke whispered.

"You're…going to kill your cousin?" she asked in shock. He scoffed.

"Distant cousin. The family has always kept that deformed little freak a secret, because other than his brain, he is a disgrace. And his usefulness is about to expire. With him dead, all the evidence of what we've done will expire too," Shefan stated.

"I do love when you're devious darling. But what about these meddling fools we have traipsing around the palace," she asked.

"Let them snoop. There will be nothing for them to find after tonight," Shefan replied.

~*~

Natalie stood beside her father and took to the task of greeting dozens of delegates, as was their duty. Jayden stood near her and held his temper, as several young and not so young men's lips lingered on Natalie's hand for what was far too long. It made her uncomfortable, but she remained gracious, like a true Princess. There was a small lull in the line of people wishing to greet them and Natalie stepped back, turning to Jayden. She wiped the back of her hand off with a cloth.

"Ugh…some of them were older than my Dad. Honestly, do they really think I would be attracted to them?" she wondered in disgust.

"You are amazingly beautiful, so I guess you can't blame them for trying, except I wanted to throttle them all," Jayden replied.

"Daddy warned me that once word got around that I could possibly become Queen someday that suitors would start coming out of the woodwork," Natalie mentioned.

"Yeah, well they all can just go back into whatever woodwork they came out of," Jayden griped, making Natalie giggle.

"Daddy also said that once there was a lull, I would be free to dance with a gentlemen of my choosing," Natalie hinted.

"Huh? Oh, you mean me?" he asked.

"Yes _you_. That way, I can show all these would be, old enough to be my father, suitors that I am already very much taken by a handsome young Jedi," Natalie replied.

"Well, in that case, may I have this dance, Your Majesty?" he asked.

"Not if you call me that," she retorted.

"Fine. May I have this dance, _My_ Princess?" he asked. She smiled and took his hand.

"Much better," she replied, as he led her to the dance floor. She smiled, as he put his arms around her waist and she put hers around his neck. Jayden saw his parents smile at them and noticed Jenna looked a little uncomfortable in her dress.

"You and Mom did a great job with Jenna. She looks great, but I'm not sure she's very happy," Jayden mentioned. Natalie peered over his shoulder, just as Marcus Olin timidly approached her.

"Well, I think that's about to change," Natalie said, as he looked over too.

"Guess he's finally noticing her," Jayden said.

"It's about time. I love Marc, but I swear, he's as dense as a door panel sometimes," Natalie joked, making Jayden laugh.

"But I guess that's boys for you," Natalie teased.

"Hey…" he protested.

"Okay, most boys. I have to say, you've always been very attuned to me," Natalie corrected herself.

"Damn right and I can prove it, because I always know exactly what you want or need, just like I know right this moment," he said confidently.

"Oh really? You think you know what I want, do you?" Natalie replied coyly.

"Yep…you want this," Jayden replied, his voice now passionate, as he raised her chin with his fingers and kissed her tenderly. As their lips parted, her eyes fluttered open.

"Yep, you were right. That was exactly what I wanted and needed," Natalie replied, as she rested her head against his chest, as they swayed to the soft ballroom music.

~*~

Elsa approached her son, who stood off to the side, sipping at a glass of wine.

"Shane, get in there and cut in. I told you to get close to Princess Natalie, just in case," Elsa urged.

"No Mother, I don't have a death wish. She's not interested in me, because she has a boyfriend, which is something I happen to respect. Not to mention, this boyfriend is a Jedi and a Skywalker, just like her best friend," Shane napped, as he pointed to Jenna. Elsa scoffed in disgust.

"These Skywalkers…they think they're so perfect, that we should bow to them like royalty. What I wouldn't give to knock Padme Skywalker off her shiny pedestal," Elsa spat jealously.

"Calm yourself, darling. If all goes as planned, then we will not need Natalie Organa. We will claim the Throne, because parliament will choose Shane to replace Queen Organa. And there will be nothing Anakin and Padme Skywalker can do about it," Shefan said, careful as to not reveal any of the details about everything they had done over the years to get rid of Breha. Shane knew none of it. He only knew that his parents had been contesting Natalie's validity as the true Princess of Alderaan since her adoption by the Organa's. Their argument was that Natalie was not royal by blood, like Breha, and therefore, the Alleman family should assume the Throne in the event of Breha's death, since it was their right if there was no blood heir. Though Shane did suspect that his parents had done questionable things and knew there were skeletons in the family closet. He just had no idea to what extent they had gone to see that the Alleman family was placed in power again. He had been groomed to be King since birth. He was a trained warrior, both in weapons and hand to hand combat, even having served in the Alderaanian Navy and carried the rank of Commander, currently. But the military was not Shane's only endeavors, even though he was a tender age of twenty-one. Aldera University was one of the finest Universities in the galaxy and Shane was a young scholar in political science, as his parents had made sure he entered politics at a young age. But Shane had always been passionate about physical science, in all areas, but mostly chemistry, astronomy, physics, and engineering of ships and weaponry. His interest in these studies was not something his parents encouraged. He sighed and started to walk off. He was regretful about coming off to Princess Natalie as such an arrogant jerk earlier, but his Mother had pressured him to get close to her. He respected her though and her father, even though his parents didn't. He wasn't interested in doing anyone harm, but it was hard to disobey one's parents, even if they were wrong. As he headed out, his Mother called to him.

"Shane, where are you going?" Elsa demanded.

"I need some air," he responded.

"What has gotten into him lately?" Elsa griped.

"Relax darling. Shane will come around," Shefan promised.

"I hope you're right. He always seems less enthused about our endeavors. How do you think he will take it when he finds out what we've really done?" Elsa asked.

"Hopefully, he'll never have to know," Shefan replied.

"Are you sure about eliminating your cousin? You know he is a rare being with certain knowledge that is considered in very high demand," Elsa mentioned.

"All the more reason for him to die. We've kept his existence a secret this long and eliminating him is the only way to make sure we don't attract any Sith attention. Besides, Cousin Merek has taught Shane the ancient language, for I never had the aptitude to learn such a complicated language. And fortunately, Shane has no idea the significance of the language or exactly what people it belongs to. Hopefully, that will remain true. If Shane were to discover the truth of our heritage…then he may turn away from us," Shefan said.

~*~

"Jenna?" Marcus said, as he approached.

"Hey…nice formal robes," Jenna replied, not used to seeing him dressed up. She blushed though, thinking about how handsome he looked.

"Yeah, Mom made me wear them. I hardly recognized you either," he mentioned.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jenna questioned hotly. Marcus held up his hands.

"Relax Jen, it's a compliment. What I meant to say was that you…you look really pretty," he stuttered, as his cheeks reddened.

"Oh…thanks," she replied. He rocked back on his heels nervously, as he stuff his hands into the pockets of his pants and looked at the dance floor.

"So, are you going to ask me to dance or what?" she demanded.

"Oh…sure, do you want to dance?" he asked.

"Isn't that what I just said, laser brain?" she retorted.

"Oh yeah…okay," he stumbled nervously over his words. Seeing Jenna like this had an effect on him that he wasn't quite prepared for. She laughed and dragged him to the dance floor.

~*~

Shane rounded the corner, intending to go the gardens when he unexpectedly plowed into a young woman. She yelped and would have gone sprawling to the floor, if he had not acted quickly in catching her.

"I'm so sorry," he exclaimed, as he caught her in his arms and helped her back to her feet. As he finally focused on her face, he found himself captivated by her angelic beauty.

"It's okay. I'm so clumsy sometimes," she fretted.

"No, it's my fault," he said, as her brown eyes sparkled when she smiled kindly at him, which only made his heart skip a beat. She was incredibly beautiful.

"Well, you're a good catch," she replied. He smiled shyly, as he realized his arms were still around her.

"Sorry…I'm Shane," he said. She smiled.

"Kimberly," she responded. They smiled at each other.

"Where were you going in such a hurry?" she asked.

"Just out to the gardens for some fresh air. Would…you like to join me?" he asked. Kimberly immediately sensed that he had a good heart and no ill intentions. And to be honest, he was very handsome and so she was instantly interested.

"Sure," Kimberly responded, as she followed the handsome young man…


	6. Part 6 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 6! Thanks for all the great reviews! Enjoy and let me know what you think! Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 6/?

Anakin and Padme swayed to the soft, elegant music that played in the background, as others conversed, ate, drank, and danced around them.

"Where do you think Daddy and I should start?" Padme quietly asked her husband.

"I think the med ward is the best place to start. There may be a lab somewhere in that vicinity too. Bant is standing by at the Temple if you need her to tell you what any suspicious chemicals or drugs are that you might find," Anakin whispered, as he kissed her cheek.

"Be careful," he told her.

"Don't worry, I'll be with Daddy. You know that if we both left at the same time, it would seem suspicious," Padme told him. He nodded.

"I know, but you know me, I always worry," Anakin replied. She pressed her lips to his in a passionate kiss.

"I'll be fine. Daddy is almost as protective of me as you are. Besides, if I somehow manage to find trouble, which I almost do, I happen to have a hand blaster strapped to my thigh, thanks to the leg holster I'm wearing under this dress," she told him.

"Wow…now I'm really turned on. Does that mean I get to frisk you later?" he asked slyly. She giggled.

"And then some," she promised, as she kissed him again. Padme noticed Elsa staring daggers at them, clearly unhinged by their presence more and more as the night went on.

"She really doesn't like me," Padme said.

"She's just jealous of your beauty," Anakin replied.

"No, I think she's jealous that I have you. Her own husband doesn't pay much attention to her," Padme said.

"Well, unfortunately for her, I have very specific tastes that narrow down to beautiful, petite, brown eyed angels with long chocolate curls and the body of a goddess, who happens to also be my soul mate and the mother of my children," he said.

"Those are very specific tastes," she mused.

"Yes and a description that only you fit. Add to that, there is always the fact that you were my love in a past life over a millennia ago when I was an immortal," he added. She giggled.

"Guess that means I'm stuck with you. Good thing you're devastating handsome and great in bed. Oh, and don't forget sexy and charming," she replied.

"Guess that makes us both pretty lucky," he said.

"I thought there was no such thing as luck," she quipped.

"You're right. Our love must just be the Will of Force," he replied. She smiled, as they shared a tender kiss.

"But…since I'm going to be snooping with Daddy, you could use your charm and talk to her. She may divulge some information unknowingly, of course," Padme suggested. He groaned.

"Do I have to?" he whined.

"Just strike up an innocent conversation, maybe about the kids. That's common ground, since she has a son," Padme mentioned.

"Fine, but I'd rather come snoop with you," Anakin said.

"I know, I'd rather you come with me too, but if we're going cover more ground, this is best. But I'll make it up to later tonight," she promised sultrily.

"You better," he replied, as they saw Riley pretend to stumble.

"Here we go. Get ready for quite the performance," Padme said.

"Hey, be a good chap and get me a refill," Riley pretended to slur, as held his glass up to the bartender.

"I think you've had enough, Sir," the bartender replied.

"Nah…I'm fine," Riley said drunkenly.

"Come on Daddy, I think it's time for you to go back to your room," Padme said, as she approached.

"Ah sweetness, your old man is just havin' a good time," Riley boasted loudly.

"I know, but I think it's time for us to leave anyway," Padme replied.

"Oh, all right," Riley said, as he stumbled toward the exit with his daughter.

"I'm terribly sorry," Padme pretended to apologize to all the other guests. Anakin shook his head in amusement at his father-in-law's antics, as he finished sipping at his red wine. He spied the angry Duchess at the bar and calmly approached.

"A refill, Master Skywalker?" the bartender asked politely.

"Yes, thank you," Anakin replied.

"You seem upset, Duchess," Anakin said to her. She huffed and turned her head to him.

"Wow…did your fancy Jedi powers tell you that? You _are_ good," she spat back with icy sarcasm. But Anakin only smirked, amused by her agitation.

"It was merely an observation. Your husband doesn't seem concerned that you're alone and upset. He seems to very good friends with those female members of parliament over there," Anakin mentioned.

"He isn't flirting, if that's what you're implying. It's business, I assure you," she snapped back quickly.

"You know, I hardly recognized you for a moment. You're rarely seen without your pretty perfect little wife hanging all over you. Just because my husband and I aren't all over each other, like you and your wife, doesn't mean we're not in love," Elsa spat. But it was her defensive tone that in fact told the real story, as did the jealousy he sensed. But he turned on the charm, in order to lessen her hostility toward him, by smiling.

"You're right, forgive me. It's just not often that we meet people that take their wedding vows as seriously as we do, outside our family and friends that is. It is good to meet another couple that feels the same way about their vows," Anakin said. He watched her gaze fall and sensed her sadness for a moment, which told him that her husband did not feel that way at all about their vows. But the Duchess quickly sobered.

"Yes…if your marriage doesn't have a solid foundation, then you don't have much," she stated, with a twinge in her voice.

"Very true," Anakin said, as he watched Shefan charm the two females of parliament, hoping to sway their support to him. He looked back to the Duchess. Pitting them against each other could reveal the truth of what was really going on and so that's what he planned to do.

~*~

Riley chuckled, as he and Padme walked toward the lift.

"Did you see all the dirty looks I got from all those stuck up snobs?" Riley asked.

"Yes, because I got them too. I think you enjoyed that a little too much, Daddy," Padme chided.

"That was nothin'. I held back, cause getting hauled out by the Royal Guard wouldn't have done us any good," Riley said.

"No, it wouldn't have. Ani suggested we find any labs they may have near the med ward," Padme said.

"Good place to start. That's on the basement level, right?" he asked, as they boarded the elevator. Padme nodded.

"Yep," she replied.

"Bet there's all kinds of stuff they'd rather no one see down there. Lots of good places to hide things," Riley said.

"That's what I'm hoping for," Padme replied, as the elevator descended.

~*~

Marcus stared into Jenna's sparkling sapphire eyes, as they slowly to the music. He couldn't believe how beautiful she looked. How had he not noticed before?

"Marcus," Jenna said for the second time with a little irritation.

"Huh?" he asked.

"What's with you? I kept saying your name and you didn't answer," she replied.

"Sorry…I just spaced out for a minute. You…you look so different tonight," he said.

"Is that a bad thing?" she asked.

"No…in fact, it's really good. I mean, you look really beautiful," he stumbled over his words. She chuckled.

"Relax, laser brain. It's still me. I'm still the same girl," Jenna insisted.

"Yeah, I know," he said, as he suddenly moved wrong and stepped on her foot.

"Ow!" she cried. His eyes widened in horror.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" he cried. But Jenna just chuckled.

"You're such a Nerf. Is this dress really freaking you out that bad?" she asked. He shrugged.

"Just be yourself. We've been friends for how long?" she asked.

"A long time, but it's hard not to freak out when you suddenly want to kiss your friend," Marcus said with embarrassment. Her eyes widened.

"You want to kiss me?" she asked.

"Kind of hard not to with you looking like you do," he replied. Jenna just stared at him.

"You can hit me now if you want," he told her.

"I'm not going to hit you," Jenna told him.

"That's new," he quipped.

"You're sooo funny. So, are you going to do this or not?" she asked.

"Do what?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.

"Kiss me," she replied.

"You want me to kiss you?" he asked. She rolled her eyes again.

"Well, you are a boy and I am a girl, but if you're going to be a dumb Nerf about it, then…" Jenna was suddenly cut off by his lips planted on hers. She let the shock fad and closed her eyes, as she got her very first kiss. As their lips parted, they stared into each other's eyes.

"Wow…" he said, grinning.

"Yeah…guess I can't pretend to hate you or beat you up anymore," she said.

"That'll be nice for a change," he replied. She punched his arm, albeit more lightly than usual.

"Unless you act like a laser brain, then I'm still going to hit you," she warned him. He shrugged.

"It would be kind of weird if you didn't keep me in line," he joked, as they smiled at each other.

~*~

Kimberly gazed up at Alderaan's nearly full moon, as they stepped out into the gardens. She breathed in the fresh air.

"Wow…I didn't realize how stuffy it was in there," she mentioned.

"Yeah, well there's a lot of hot air blowing around with all the egos in there. Most who sit on parliament think quite well of themselves," Shane said. Kimberly giggled.

"My Mom usually says the same about some of her colleagues in the Senate, though she's not always quite as nice," Kimberly said.

"You Mother is to be admired. She is one of the most effective and greatest leaders in modern history," Shane said.

"Thanks, I guess that means you know I'm a Skywalker. I wasn't sure you'd want to have anything to do with me if you knew," Kimberly replied. He smiled at her.

"I have nothing against your family, on the contrary, I have nothing but respect for your parents. I do not share the opinions of my own parents on many things. I don't even want to be King. If I had my way, I'd throw all my support behind Princess Natalie," he replied.

"Then you should do just that. Do your parents know that you don't want to be King?" she asked. He scoffed.

"I love my parents, but they don't really care that I have no interest in the Throne," Shane replied.

"That's too bad, but you should still tell them how you feel," Kimberly suggested. He smiled.

"Perhaps I'll get up the courage, but they're not going to like it," Shane replied.

"Well, I'd be happy to be there when you tell them for support, if you'd like," Kimberly offered.

"I just might take you up on that. You're really easy to talk to," Shane said, as he gazed down at her. Kimberly blushed shyly. He was so handsome.

"So are you. Since you don't want to be King, what is it that you want to do?" she asked.

"Well, I have interests in a lot of fields, none of which my parents are enthused about. But I'm fascinated by sciences of all kinds, particularly astronomy, chemistry, and physics. I'm also a Commander in the Alderaanian military and fluent in several languages," he said.

"Wow…how can your parents not be proud? It's amazing to be so well versed in so many academic areas. My Mother always stresses to us how important academia is. She's got degrees in law, political science, and galactic history," Kimberly said.

"I find it very important too. What are your interests, I mean, besides your study to become a Jedi?" he asked.

"Well, surprisingly, many don't expect this from me, but I like helping my brother Luke and my Dad work on fixing ships and speeders. I'm not as good with machines as them, but I always have fun and learn a lot," she began.

"Wow…yeah, I don't think I would have guessed that about you," he said.

"I like all my classes at the Temple and I hold my own in training, though some of my siblings are more skilled than I am in combat. I find my prowess in other areas of the Force," Kimberly said.

"What do mean?" he asked, truly intrigued.

"Well, my Dad always says that I'm the most empathic and I often feel things more deeply than some Jedi. I can usually sense a person's intentions earlier or if someone is injured, I can often pinpoint the exact source of the pain," Kimberly explained.

"That amazing," he said in awe. She blushed.

"Not really. You should see my brothers and sisters spar," Kimberly said.

"No, I mean it's really amazing. I'm sure they're amazing to see in combat, but to have the amazing ability to help people in the way your skills do…that has to be truly rewarding," he mentioned. She nodded.

"It can be and it can also be hard, because if someone I love is hurting, it can be horrible," she said.

"I'll bet. But have you ever considered going into medicine? I mean, with your skills, you would be an amazing Doctor, or Healer in your case, being a Jedi and all," he said. She looked up at him.

"Actually, I considered it once. I love helping people," she replied.

"Well, I know that if I was hurt or sick and you were my Healer, I'd feel pretty good about my recovery," he said. She smiled.

"Thanks," she replied.

"I guess I should probably get you back inside, before people start to wonder where you went," he said. She nodded.

"Yeah," she agreed.

"But…once we get back in there, I'd really like it if we could maybe dance and talk more," he suggested. She smiled.

"I'd really like that too," she replied, as they went back inside.

~*~

Natalie squeezed her Mother's hand, as she stood by her bedside. She and Jayden had left the banquet at her request to come see Breha. Upon their arrival earlier today, Natalie had been very hopeful, for Breha had seemed to be doing a little better, as she always did during her treatments at the Temple. But since they returned to Alderaan, just a few hours ago, Breha had grown worse again and Natalie was devastated. Jayden put his hand on her shoulder and she turned to him, as tears rolled down her cheeks. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I don't understand. Why is she getting worse all the sudden?" Natalie sobbed.

"We've only been on Alderaan for a few hours. That means there is someone here that is making her like this. Come on," he said, as he took her by the hand. She wiped her eyes with her other hand.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"We're going to get Artoo and we're going to plug him into the terminal in the docking bay. We'll hack into the security system and watch the video feed for the cameras outside your Mom's room. We'll find out exactly who has been in contact with her," Jayden stated.

"Jay, are you saying that you think it's one of the doctors?" she whispered. He nodded.

"If the Duke is paying him or her enough, then yes," Jayden replied, as he led her out.

~*~

Anakin watched, as the Duchess downed another glass of wine, as she grew increasingly irritated with her husband's flirting.

"He must really want their support," Anakin mentioned.

"Well, it's your family's fault that he has to work so hard to repair our family's reputation. Your wife's and Prince Organa's ludicrous accusations against our family have vilified us. I assure you the Queen's illness has nothing to do with us," she lied.

"Yet you've sought to monopolize on the opportunity by trying to oust Natalie from her rightful place on the Throne," Anakin responded. The Duchess huffed.

"That little orphan isn't royal by blood. My son should be King. It is his birthright if the Organa's produce no blood heir!" Elsa spat.

"Does your son even want to be King? I heard he has other interests, according to Bail," Anakin said.

"Prince Organa knows nothing about my son. Shane will realize that he belongs on the Throne and grow out of that other nonsense. I'll not have my son spending the rest of his life with his nose in the books or teaching classrooms full of brats," Elsa said.

"Shane wants to teach? That's a very noble profession," Anakin responded, finding it very interesting. The boy was talented in many areas and very smart with the potential to become quite the scholar, according to Bail. And the best part was he had a good heart and knew nothing of his parent's schemes or evildoings. It was sad, because he would be hurt when he learned the truth.

"It's difficult, but sometimes we have to let our children follow their own paths. We can't live their lives for them," Anakin told her.

"Thank you for the Jedi wisdom, but I think I know what is best for my son," she snapped. Anakin shook his head and saw Shane enter the banquet hall, laughing and talking with Kimberly. Normally, he would go straight into over protective father mode like he did with Leia and Jake, but he sensed no ill will from Shane and Kimberly seemed very happy, as they talked animatedly.

"Well, we might not be getting along, but it seems our kids are," Anakin mentioned. Elsa's eyes darted around the room in search of her son. She spotted him dancing with the middle Skywalker girl and Elsa's temper flared, as she glared at the pretty pixie-like girl whose resemblance to her Mother would ensure Elsa's hatred of her.

"Well, I hope your little girl doesn't think she has a chance in Sith hell with my son. Shane will only be allowed to court a Princess," Elsa said snottily.

"I really hope that you didn't just imply that my daughter isn't good enough for your son," Anakin said, as he held his temper in check. The Duchess smirked.

"Does that aggravate you, Jedi Skywalker?" she taunted.

"Not as much as it aggravates you that my wife and I will uncover all your and your husband's dirty secrets and expose you to everyone, including your son," Anakin replied, as he left. Talking to the Duchess had proved to be a waste of time and he decided to pursue other avenues in the investigation. But Elsa was not done with Anakin and she decided to send the Jedi a message through his precious little girl.

"Bartender, give me two of those non-alcoholic fruit drinks," Elsa ordered.

"Yes Milady," he said, as he promptly prepared the drinks. As the bartender turned away, the Duchess took a vile of white powder out of her evening clutch and poured the contents into the glass on the left. She discarded the empty vile and swirled the glass, before picking the drinks up, and heading toward her son.

"Shane, sweetheart, who is your lovely friend?" she asked, faking her best sincere smile toward Kimberly, which didn't fool Kimberly for a minute.

"Mother, this is Kimberly Skywalker," Shane introduced.

"Oh of course, it's so lovely to meet you dear. I was just talking with your charming father. We saw the two of you and I decided I'd bring you both a refreshing drink. Enjoy," Elsa said, as she handed the drinks to them. Shane sighed.

"She cane be so fake sometimes. I apologize," Shane said, embarrassed by his Mother's antics.

"Don't be. I sense that, while she doesn't like me yet, she does love you," Kimberly replied.

"Wow…you are good at that. And yes, she loves me, albeit in her own crazy way. At least she saved me a trip to the bar," he said, as he raised his glass.

"To new friends," he toasted, as they clinked their glasses together and sipped at the drinks. Kimberly sensed that the Duchess didn't like the idea of her anywhere near Shane, but never would Kimberly have guessed that Elsa would poison her…


	7. Part 7 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in. This is the 21st vignette and the sandbox is getting pretty big!

AN: Here's part 7! Thanks for all the great reviews. Enjoy this next installment and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 7/?

"Having you visit, Your Majesty, is truly an honor," the chairman speaker said.

"The honor is mine, Gentlemen Speaker. Good evening," Pooja replied, as she turned to Adam.

"Well, I think I've greeted every delegate in this palace now," she said with exhaustion, as she smiled at her beloved, who had seemed troubled all evening.

"Adam…what's bothering you?" she asked.

"There's something I need to tell you," he replied.

"You know you can tell me anything, love," she whispered.

"Let's go somewhere where we can be alone," he suggested.

"Okay, is everything all right?" she questioned. He nodded.

"It will be. Just promise me that no matter what you hear that you remember my love for you," he told her. She nodded in confusion, as they left for the gardens. Unbeknownst to them, a man had been observing them quietly and raised his comlink to his lips.

"_They're alone and heading for the gardens, Sir," _

"Good work," Xalazar stated, as he, Devan, and Anya stood outside the palace gates, with two androids behind them.

"Take care of those guards quietly," Xalazar ordered to them. The androids obeyed and quietly jumped and strangled the guards. With that, the De'reux family and the androids entered the palace gardens…

Riley and Padme searched the med lab and found all kinds of different chemicals and potions stored there.

"This is one hell of a medicine cabinet," Riley mentioned.

"Any combination of these could cause all kinds of medical problems," Padme replied.

"Well, I guess we should just type a message to Bant listing all these drugs and let her do her magic. Did you get the most recent blood sample from Bail?" Riley asked. Padme took a small vile containing red liquid out of her evening clutch.

"If she's been given anything since she's been here, this will tell Bant what it was, if it's even detectable. Bant has never been able to detect anything abnormal before," Padme said.

"Yeah, but maybe there's something here that she wasn't looking for or something that's really good at disguising itself once it's in Breha's body," Riley replied.

"You're probably right," Padme said, as she sat down and started typing out the names on all the viles and bottles of liquid drugs and potions.

"How about the database? Do you think we can hack in?" Padme asked, as her father sat down at the other terminal.

"It's encrypted and unfortunately, hacking has never been my strong suit. Where's short stuff?" Riley asked, referring to Artoo.

"He should be on his way down. I commed him when we got here," Padme replied. Padme sighed.

"I'm going to comm Anakin. He's immune to just about any poison. He might recognize whether some of these are in fact drugs to treat illnesses or poisons," Padme said.

"Good idea," Riley said, as he looked at some of them too, but unfortunately, did not recognize any of the names.

"I'm no doctor, sweetness, but I've never seen this kind of stuff in a medical lab before. This is more like the lab belonging to a scientist," Riley said.

"I know, I haven't seen this many bottles of potions since…" Padme stopped, as she remembered something.

"Since what?" Riley asked.

"Since Ani and I were on Sifo-Dyas' ship. They had Anakin restrained and his scientists kept injecting him with all kinds of poisons, because they seemed fascinated by the fact that he was immune to all of them," Padme said, as she looked at her father. Riley raised his comlink to his lips and sent his frequency to Anakin's.

"_Skywalker," _Anakin answered.

"Anakin, you should get down here to the med lab. We haven't found anything concrete yet, but I think we will as soon as Artoo gets here and hacks into the database. We think there may be a Xalryn connection going on here," Riley said.

"_I'll be right there," _Anakin answered anxiously. Padme sighed, as she finished and sent her message to Bant.

"There has to be something else around here that will tell us something," Padme said in frustration, as she gazed around the room.

"I'm sure we'll find our answers in this damn database, cause they sure as hell don't want us to get into it," Riley said, as he leaned forward over the table. Suddenly, behind them, one of the stark white walls or what was meant to look like a wall and was actually a door, slid open. A deformed Xalryn male stood in the doorway, wearing a white lab coat, and pointed a blaster at Riley.

"And you won't discover my secrets, Zander," the man said, startling them both.

"What the hell?!" Riley exclaimed, as he reached for his weapon. But the freakish looking man was quicker than expected and fired, hitting Riley with a stun ray.

"Daddy!" Padme screamed, as Riley fell unconscious to the floor.

"Don't move Senator," the man warned menacingly. To Padme's horror, Sifo-Dyas' disembodied spirit shimmered to life behind him.

"Easy Merek, she must not be harmed," Sifo-Dyas warned.

"Of course, Your Highness," Merek obeyed. Padme backed away and ran to the door, but it slammed shut and Merek blasted the control panel. She heard Artoo whirl from the outside.

"Artoo…get Anakin, quickly!" Padme called. He whirled and she heard him scurry away in search of her husband. Padme turned around and trembled, as Sifo-Dyas brought himself face to face with her.

"I should have known you and your people were behind all of this," Padme spat.

"Yes and now you'll learn everything before Merek sedates you and puts you on a shuttle with coordinates set for the location I have designated for you to be picked up by my people and brought to me. Originally, I had nothing to do with Merek and the Alleman family's plot. But I have decided that I will seize the opportunity to claim you," Sifo-Dyas stated.

"Anakin will never let you succeed," Padme protested, as she suddenly felt lightheaded. Sifo-Dyas was doing something to her and Padme lost consciousness, thanks to his dark energies, and she slumped against the wall. As instructed, Merek lifted the petite woman over his shoulder and took her into his secret lab. Riley groaned, as he woke up.

"No you don't, you freaky bastard!" Riley screamed, as he stumbled through the secret entrance, just in time, before it closed.

"What did you want to tell me?" Pooja asked, as they arrived in the gardens. He took her hands in his own.

"Pooja…I love you with all my heart and soul, but I haven't been completely honest with you," Adam said.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"My last name isn't Landrey and what I'm about to tell you will probably sign my death certificate, but I don't care as long as I can make sure you are protected," Adam stated.

"Adam, you're scaring me," Pooja replied.

"I know and I'm sorry. But in my family, you do the jobs you're told to do and if you betray my father, then he has you killed," Adam continued.

"Adam, what are you saying?" she asked, panic creeping into her voice.

"Pooja, I'm in love with you and that in itself is betrayal in my family. My job was to get close to you and then betray the crown to my family. Instead, I fell in love with you, because I'm not like the others in my family. I've been lying to my father to keep him away from you, but he's getting suspicious and will probably have me killed," Anakin said frantically.

"Who is your father?" she asked.

"Xalazar De'reux," he responded. She recoiled in shock and disbelief.

"Pooja, you have to believe me, I love you and I'm not like them!" Adam pleaded. Pooja swallowed the lump in her throat and before she could respond, a voice beat her to it.

"Yes, you should believe him, Your Majesty. My worthless son has disobeyed his mandate and betrayed his entire family, all for you, and now you'll both die for it, in the name of your so called _love,_" Xalazar spat, as he approached. Adam gasped, as he pulled her into his arms. They started to run, but two androids blocked their path, as Xalazar, Devan, and Anya blocked the other direction.

"Oh…what a twisted web you've woven, brother. You always were a weak, sentimental little fool," Devan sneered.

"Though I have to say, she's a sweet piece of ass," he learned evilly.

"Stay away from her!" Adam warned. But four blasters cornered them in response.

"Move or scream and she's dead," Xalazar growled.

"Are we taking them back to the ship?" Devan asked.

"No, we're going to take them to the docking bay and steal the Queen's ship. Skywalker has all his family's ships equipped with his Sentry technology and the Master wants it," Xalazar responded. Devan grabbed Pooja and put his thick arm around her neck.

"NO!" Adam cried, but he pointed the blaster at her head.

"Quiet or she's dead!" Devan warned, as the android's dragged him along and they snuck toward the docking bay through the gardens and to the outside entrance.

"Get your filthy freakish claws off my daughter!" Riley roared, as he clamored to his feet, after taking a spill upon infiltrating the secret lab behind the seemingly normal looking medical lab. And he took a minute to look around, recognizing many of the things he had seen aboard Sifo-Dyas' ship four years ago when they had been on their way to Falleen. The balding, pointy eared creature pointed his blaster at the former scoundrel, as he carried Padme to his containment bed. It was like a medical type bed on wheels, only the golden border with ornate symbols carved into it indicated that it was meant for a very important person. He put her down and then stepped over to his control console. Riley watched, as Sifo-Dyas' nearly transparent form appeared next to his daughter and he felt his rage nearly explode.

"You get the hell away from my daughter, you sick, twisted bastard!" Riley screamed, as he launched toward him and Merek. But the scientist was ready and ray shields suddenly surrounded him, keeping him at bay.

"You're lucky to still be breathing, Zander. If you continue to make a nuisance of yourself, my humble follower here will shoot you again, only this time, I assure you. It will not be with a stun ray," Sifo-Dyas warned.

"Let the bug-eyed little freak take his best shot, cause I'm not lettin' you do Force knows what to my baby girl," Riley cried. Sifo-Dyas chuckled.

"Don't worry Zander. This is just a containment chamber. It will safely transport her to the designated coordinates without incident. She has proved to be quite tenacious, I have learned, and I will not risk her attempting to escape," Sifo-Dyas said, as he nodded to the scientist. He turned Padme on her back and wrist and ankle cuffs sprang forth from the platform she laid on, securing her in place; before a glass dome was activated don the containment contraption, covering her.

"What the hell…she'll suffocate!" Riley panicked.

"No, the containment chamber circulates oxygen into her and expels the carbon dioxide that she exhales. She will be perfectly fine," Merek responded.

"Perfectly fine? Is that what you call this, you bony, bald headed little circus freak?!" Riley screamed.

"Do quiet down, Mr. Zander, or I will take great pleasure in killing you," Merek threatened.

"Yeah, I bet you would, ugly, cause we both know the only way a pathetic weakling like you could kill me if you've got me trapped. You couldn't take me in a fight. I've killed far more formidable opponents than the likes of your pathetic ass," Riley spat. Merek bared his pointy yellowed teeth, clearly unnerved by Riley's insults. But Sifo-Dyas only chuckled.

"You are always amusing, Zander," Sifo-Dyas replied, as he turned to his charge.

"Let's go. Get her on the shuttle and initiate the self destruct sequence to destroy this lab," Sifo-Dyas ordered. Suddenly, the entrance to the secret lab exploded, sending chunks of duraplaster raining down around them. Anakin extinguished his blinding white blade, as he stepped into the room.

"You're not taking her anywhere," he growled, as his eyes flashed gold and burrowed into Sif0-Dyas like daggers.

"You will not stop me forever! I will realize my ultimate goal!" Sifo-Dyas yelled.

"Not as long as I'm standing in your way," Anakin replied.

"You will win again today, but I will win in the end. She and your power, along with the galaxy will be mine!" he ranted. Anakin's eyes flashed with light again, causing the evil phantom to shy away.

"I'll never let you win. And you can't stand my light. It kills you in this form. You need darkness to feed on. Mark my words, I will find a way to permanently kill you next time," Anakin said.

"We shall see who kills who when we meet again, Chosen One," Sifo-Dyas growled, as he disappeared. Anakin raised his hand and released the ray shields around Riley. As Anakin hurried to Padme, Merek cried out, as Riley grabbed him and slammed him against one of the consoles.

"All right, bug eyes, tell us everything that's going on here," Riley demanded.

"I'm not telling you anything, you filthy scoundrel," Merek spat.

"You won't have to. Artoo is hacking your database as we speak. And even if that doesn't tell us everything, I'd love nothing more than to melt your brains with a mind probe to get what I need, so you may want to rethink talking," Anakin replied, as he deactivated the glass dome and released the restraints. Padme moaned, as Anakin caressed her cheek.

"It's okay angel, I'm here," he told her, as she started trembling. He helped her sit up and then gently helped her off the bed and to her feet. She clung to him, as she gazed nervously around the room.

"He's gone for now, angel," he told her and she hugged him tightly. She wanted to break down in his arms and just be held by him, but she knew the right time for that would be later.

"Come on, Artoo's hacking into the database and we're going to find out everything that's going on here," Anakin said, glaring at Merek.

"Yeah, let's go…Doc," Riley said sarcastically, as he dragged the scientist along.

"You know, you should be more careful, cause accidents happen," Riley said.

"What are you talking about?" Merek spat, just as Riley slammed his head into the wall next to the opening Anakin had made.

"OWW!" Merek cried out, holding his now bruised face in pain.

"Accidents like that," Riley replied.

"Daddy, was that really necessary?" Padme questioned.

"What? It's not like he can get any uglier," Riley joked, as they prepared to discover all the secrets Merek had locked in the lab database.

Shane smiled at the young woman in his arms, as they continued to dance and talk.

"You know, I didn't think I'd be having such a good time tonight. Good thing I met you," Shane said. Kimberly blushed.

"I know, I'm having a really great time too," Kimberly said, as a sudden wave of dizziness hit her.

"Kimberly, are you okay?" he asked, instantly concerned.

"I…I don't know, I'm really dizzy all the sudden," Kimberly said, as she slumped against Shane.

"Kimberly," he cried in alarm, as she fainted in his arms.

"Kim!" Luke cried, as he, Leia, and Mara surrounded Shane.

"I don't know what happened. She just got dizzy all the sudden and fainted," Shane said, as he cradled her.

"Did she drink anything?" Luke asked.

"We both did. My…my mother brought us both drinks," Shane said, as he looked up at his mother. He didn't want to think she was responsible, but somehow, he knew, deep down, that she was. Leia picked up the glasses and handed them to Zia. She examined them both and held the one Kimberly had drank from.

"This one is contaminated with something, though I don't know what," Zia stated, as she tasted a drop.

Shefan took his wife by the arm.

"What did you do?" he hissed in a hushed whisper.

"I decided to teach those Skywalkers a lesson," she hissed back.

"Dammit Elsa, I didn't need anymore complications," Shefan hissed.

"They can prove nothing," she replied.

"Why Mother…what did you give her!" Shane yelled, surprising them both.

"You will not speak to me with such disrespect. I am you Mother and I did nothing to the little harlot," Elsa spat.

"Kids, get her to the med ward. The two of you need to come with us and we'll let you explain to Anakin and Padme how you poisoned their daughter!" Zia yelled, drawing the attention of the entire room.

"We did no such thing and we're not going anywhere with you!" Elsa spat.

"You're lying and you better hope my granddaughter will be okay," Qui-Gon snapped.

"Come with us willingly or forcefully. Your choice," Mace said sternly. Elsa and Shefan conceded and let the Jedi lead them away. Shane lifted Kimberly into his arms and glared at his parents, before following Kimberly's siblings to the med ward.

Are you sure we should be doing this?" Natalie asked, as Jayden led her into the docking bay.

"Sure, we'll take a cruise in the speeder and cuddle under the stars for a while, then we'll be back before anyone knows," Jayden said, as he held her in his arms. She smiled, as he kissed her passionately.

"What are you two doing here?" Jenna asked, as she and Marcus arrived.

"We're going to sneak Dad's speeder out for a quick moonlight cruise. What are you two doing here?" Jayden asked.

"The same," Jenna answered.

"Well, we were here first, so tough luck," Jayden replied.

"I don't know what makes either of you think you can take one of your Dad's speeders out for a ride without him knowing. I mean, he's Anakin Skywalker. He's going to know," Marcus said.

"Don't be a killjoy," Jenna replied.

"He has a very good point. Maybe we should just go back to the party," Natalie said.

"Aw, but it's a snore fest," Jenna complained.

"She's got a point too," Jayden added, as they suddenly heard commotion.

"Keep moving," Devan growled, as he dragged Pooja along and she whimpered frightfully.

"Let her go!" Adam roared, but this only earned him a punch in the gut from one of the android's steel fists, which dropped him to the floor in agony.

"Uh oh, looks like things just got more interesting," Marcus said, as the three Jedi padawans drew their light sabers and Jayden guarded Natalie.

"Boss, we got witnesses," the other android said.

"Then take care of them," Xalazar ordered, as the android's descended on the four teens…


	8. Part 8 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 8! Thanks for all the great reviews and enjoy!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 8/?

As the android's descended upon the four teens, Xalazar grabbed Pooja's arm, as Devan restrained his brother.

"Come along, Your Majesty. Let's get you on the ship," Xalazar said. But Adam wasn't about to let them take her without a fight. He bit his brother's arm and Devan roared in pain, as Adam flipped him over his shoulder and onto his back. Devan struggled to his feet and charged angrily at Adam, throwing all his weight into him, as they went wrestling to the floor.

Meanwhile, the two androids faced each pair of teens. Jayden's blade caught the android's light whip, as he attempted to strike at Natalie with it.

"Nat, go find cover," he called to her. She slowly backed away and tucked herself behind several storage bins full of tools. Jayden dueled the formidable opponent, as his twin and Marcus faced the other.

The other android drew back and his light whip came lashing out at them. Marcus blocked it, but the light whip coiled itself around his blade. The android smirked, as he yanked Marcus toward him and with his effortless brute strength, flung him into the wall off to the side. Jenna charged and caught the android off guard when she landed a kick in his abdomen and he felt it. He snarled, still perplexed since her leg should have broken upon impact with his body and drew his weapon back.

Xalazar saw that both Jayden and Jenna were holding their own against the mechanical soldiers, while his sons, bloodied and bruised, still warred with each other. He saw Marcus getting back up, preparing to rejoin the fight. But Xalazar planned to even the odds. Above Marcus, a metal platform, hung from the rafter by grappling chains. On the platform were heavy barrels of ship fuel and the platform itself weighed at least a ton. Smirking evilly, Xalazar shot the chains holding the platform. Fortunately, Pooja saw it and cried out to him.

"Marcus…look out!" she screamed. He rolled out of the way, as the barrels of fuel smashed to bits, splashing fuel everywhere and filling the floor with it. Unfortunately, Marcus could not evade the platform and cried out, as it landed on him, trapping his legs.

"Marcus!" Jenna cried, as the android chuckled.

"Looks like your boyfriend is Gondark bait," the thing joked. Jenna let out a shrill, angry cry, as she threw all her weight into the android, which should have felt like nothing to him, but he cried out in surprise, as he went tumbling to the sticky, fuel laden floor, as she pounded her fists into the manmade monstrosity. Xalazar saw the possibility of being beaten by these kids and decided it was time to cut his losses. He pointed his blaster at Pooja and glared at the young Queen.

"It's time to die, Your Majesty," Xalazar stated.

"NO!" Adam screamed.

The other android slammed Jayden against the wall and the young Jedi gasped for air, as the android wrapped his large hand around his neck. Jayden coughed and tried desperately to release his hold.

"Die Jedi scum!" the android growled.

"Jayden!" Natalie cried to him. He instantly focused on her voice and spotted one of the heavy barrels filled with tools that she was hidden behind. He focused on his love for her and need to protect her. The bin shook and then took flight, plowing into the android and sent him flying. He collided with the far wall, went through it, and hit another wall, before he broke apart in mangled pieces.

Jenna continued to beat on the other android with her unusual super strength and the android's chest was now visible, as just a mass of wires, because she had broken the outer skin looking shell away.

"You know, my Dad taught me a lot about machines and when one is broken, you have to take them apart to fix them!" Jenna yelled, as she pulled out the mechanical device in the center of his chest that functioned like a heart. She tossed the contraption away and looked back at the dead android.

"But then you learn that some machines are just a lost cause and belong in the scrap heap," Jenna said, as she ran to Marcus.

"I think…my right leg is broken," he groaned in pain.

"Can you slide out?" she asked.

"No…I'm stuck," Marcus cried. Determination lined her face.

"Not for long," she replied, as she started trying to lift the two ton platform.

Pooja clenched her eyes shut and waited for the pain that was about to come. Tears slipped down her cheeks, as she realized she was about to die.

"NOOO!" Adam screamed, as he threw Devan off and jumped in front of Pooja, taking a blaster bolt in his left pectoral muscle.

"ADAM!" Pooja screamed, as she fell to her knees beside him.

"Run Pooja…get out of here," he said weakly. Tears steamed down her cheeks.

"I'm not leaving you," she sobbed.

"Then you'll both die. It's time I finish you off…son," Xalazar sneered.

"No Xal…you can't kill our son, you can't!" Anya pleaded. He growled and backhanded her hard with the butt of his blaster. Blood sprayed from her nose and mouth, as she fell on her side. Xalazar leaned down over her and punched her three more times in the face.

"Say another word and you're dead, you little whore," he spat angrily, as she cried and whimpered in pain.

"Mom…" Adam croaked, as his father loomed over them again.

"I'll let you watch her die, before I finish you off. You're a disgrace to the De'reux family name," Xalazar spat.

"And you're a despicable excuse for a human being," Adam rasped, as he coughed violently.

"I'm glad I'm nothing like you," Adam spat. Xalazar growled.

"Goodbye you little freak," Xalazar snarled, as he prepared to shoot him and Pooja. But suddenly, before he could squeeze the trigger, a light saber pierced his heart through his back. Obi-Wan extracted his blade and Xalazar fell dead to the floor.

"Never strike an opponent in the back, unless it's absolutely necessary," Obi-Wan told Will, who stood beside him.

"Daddy…he shot Adam," Pooja sobbed, as he helped her to her feet.

"It's all right darling, we'll get him the help he needs," Obi-Wan promised.

"My Mother…help her. She's not really…evil," Adam rasped. Devan screamed maniacally, as he leapt up, grabbing his father's blaster. But Ryoo hopped in their path and blocked his onslaught, sending three blaster bolts back at him. They hit him in the head, killing him instantly.

"Ryoo, you and Lando get Lady De'reux and I'll take Adam. They both need medical attention," Obi-Wan said. They nodded.

"Dad, what about Marcus?" Will asked, as they all turned to witness Jenna trying to lift the platform. But she wouldn't need any help, as she amazed them all with her super human strength yet again. She cried out under the strain, as she lifted the platform a few inches and Jayden pulled Marcus out.

"Oww…my leg is broken for sure," Marcus cried.

"Great, that means we'll have to listen to you whine about it for the next few weeks," Jenna joked. He smirked.

"You saved me, Jen. I don't know how you lifted that thing, but thanks," he said.

"I lifted it, because I'm just that wizard and you better thank me, cause it was heavy," she complained, as they smiled at each other. Jayden rolled his eyes, knowing that this kind of banter was how they flirted with each other.

"You two are weird," he said, as he helped Marcus up in order to help him to the med ward. He started hobbling toward the exit with Jayden's help.

"It will take forever to get there that way," Jenna said, as she grabbed his arm.

"Jen…no…" Marcus protested, as she threw him over her shoulder and followed her Uncle and cousins.

"Aww…this is so embarrassing," he complained.

"Oh stop whining," she retorted.

"All right Doc, start talking," Riley ordered. Artoo whirled and let out a string of clicks and beeps. Anakin read his translator.

"Artoo says that you're behind the poisoning of the Queen. She doesn't really have a disease or illness at all, does she?" Anakin asked.

"No, you fool, the Alderaanian Throne would have belonged to the Xalryn now if my idiot cousin had not made so many careless errors," Merek spat.

"Shefan is your cousin then and you're both from Xalryn," Padme concluded.

"Yes, but Shefan was born here on Alderaan," Merek responded.

"That's why he doesn't look as freakish as you," Riley said and Merek glared at him. They were about to continue when Mace and Qui-Gon burst into the lab with Shefan and Elsa.

"What's going on?" Padme asked.

"The Duchess put something in Kimberly's drink. She fainted and Shane and the kids took her to the med ward," Qui-Gon explained.

"What…you poisoned our daughter?" Padme cried, as she lunged toward the Duchess, but Anakin held her back.

"What did you give her?" Anakin roared.

"She had no place anywhere near my Shane and so I decided to teach her a lesson with one of Merek's concoctions," Elsa spat.

"You stupid little fool, I told you to stay out of my lab," Merek spat at her.

"What was it that was given to her?" Anakin demanded.

"The same mixture of things I've been giving the Queen in secret for years, at Shefan's orders, of course," Merek said proudly, as he turned on his cousin.

"You little freak, I gave you the means to conduct your ridiculous experiments and protected your identity!" Shefan snarled.

"Then I guess that makes you the fool. At least your son inherited the mind of a genius from me. Too bad he's too busy being a pathetic little do-gooder. What a waste of scientific talent," Merek spat.

"Answer my question now!" Anakin roared.

"Your brat will be fine. She only received a miniscule amount of the poison. The antidote will expel it. However, it may be too late for the Queen, due to her continued exposure," Merek said smugly, as he produced a rack of viles filled with green liquid from one of the cabinets. Anakin took it.

"Look after them until we get back and then you'll start talking again," Anakin said, as he led Padme to the door, but stopped briefly, face to face with Elsa.

"You better hope she's okay or I'll make sure you go to Kessel for sure," Anakin threatened, as they hurried to the med lab.

"What's wrong with her?" Luke asked, as they all leapt from their seats, as the doctor emerged.

"I don't know. Her symptoms are mirroring the Queen's, albeit much less severe. I…I don't know what to do for her," the doctor said

"That's because she was poisoned, just has the Queen has been repeatedly for years," Anakin announced, as he and Padme burst into the room.

"Poisoned?" the doctor questioned.

"By Doctor Merek, the cousin of Shefan Alleman," Padme stated. Shane suddenly looked sick as his worst fears were realized. Padme put her hand on the young man's shoulder.

"This is not your fault and we can see that you care for Kimberly. We don't blame you, because we know you knew none of this. But I think you can help us, especially if you're acquainted with your second cousin," Padme said.

"I do care for her…even though we just met and I'll help with whatever I can," Shane replied.

"Merek said this is the antidote and I sensed he was telling the truth. It needs to be administered to them both as soon as possible. Breha needs several doses over time likely, being that she's been exposed for so long," Anakin told the doctor.

"I'll do it right away," the doctor replied.

"We need to be with our baby," Padme pleaded. The doctor nodded.

"Okay, just the two of you for now," the doctor replied, as Anakin and Padme followed.

_Several hours later…_

Kimberly slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She immediately noticed that she was in a hospital bed and she spotted her parents asleep on a sofa in her room. Padme opened her eyes and lifted her head from Anakin's chest.

"Ani…she's awake," Padme said, shaking him. It had been a long night and not wanting to leave their tiny angel's side, they had the Alleman's and Merek put in the palace cell block and sent everyone else to bed, especially after they had discovered the ordeal Pooja and their youngest twins had been through. Marcus was fine, suffering only a broken leg and he was with his parents. Adam, after saving Pooja's life, pulled through, thanks to the doctors, who also patched his Mother up. Anya, now free from her evil, abusive husband, stayed beside her son's bedside.

This morning, they would resume their questioning of the Alleman family and discover everything Merek could tell them about the Xalryn.

"Mom…" Kimberly squeaked.

"I'm here baby," Padme cooed, as she brushed her daughter's bangs from her eyes.

"Daddy?" she asked, confused by where she was.

"I'm here too, tiny angel. You had us worried there for a while," he said, as he took her hand.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Someone put something in your drink and it made you sick. But you were given the antidote a few hours ago and you're going to be fine. I'm going to go get the doctor so she can check you over while Daddy stays with you," Padme told her, as she went to tell the doctor that Kimberly was awake.

"Daddy," Kimberly asked.

"What?" Anakin asked.

"Who poisoned me?" she asked. He sighed.

"I'm afraid it was Duchess Alleman, even though she denies it," Anakin replied.

"Daddy, Shane didn't have anything to do with it. I know he wouldn't try to hurt me," Kimberly said. Anakin smiled and kissed her forehead.

"I know," he replied simply.

"Can I see him?" she asked.

"After the doctor gives you a clean bill of health, I'll send him in," Anakin promised, as Padme returned with the Doctor.

Marcus hobbled out of the med room on crutches with his parents behind him.

"How's the leg?" Jenna asked.

"It's mended, but the healer wants me to use these dumb things for a couple weeks," Marcus replied.

"Well, I could just throw you over my shoulder again and carry you around," she joked. He gave her a look of disdain.

"No thanks," he replied. She smirked and shrugged.

"Okay…I guess it might be entertaining watching you try to get around on these things. Maybe Master Yoda will let you borrow his hover pad," Jenna joked.

"I'm so glad my plight amuses you," he deadpanned.

"It does amuse me, but seriously, I'm glad you're going to be okay, Olin," she replied. He smirked.

"Thanks Skywalker," he replied.

"So…should we kiss?" she asked timidly. He shrugged.

"It is usually what boyfriends and girlfriends usually do," he replied timidly.

"Is that…what we are?" she asked.

"I guess…I mean if you want to be that is," he replied quickly. She lightly pinched his arm.

"Relax laser brain, you're getting hot and bothered again. It's just me. My hair is a mess again, my dress has ugly ship fuel stains all over it, and I smell like an engine," she told him.

"You're still gorgeous," he blurted out, making her blush.

"Thanks," she said, as she looked down shyly.

"So…I guess you're my girlfriend now?" he asked. She smiled and nodded.

"Someone has to keep you in line and keep you out of trouble, so it might as well be me," she replied. He smirked and gently kissed her lips.

"Come on, let's get some breakfast," he suggested, as they started off for the dining hall to eat.

Anakin and Padme stood with Bail, Natalie, and Jayden, as the doctor exited Breha's room.

"Doctor, what can you tell us?" Bail asked anxiously.

"Your wife is resting comfortably and she is responding well to the antidote. She is recovering very slowly, however, being that Dr. Merek unknowingly poisoned her on her visits to Alderaan over the last ten years. It is too early to tell if there will be any long term damage to her organs and I suspect the damage to her immune system will take a very long time to recover, if it all. She will have to be very carefully about contracting even common colds and illnesses, because they will be harder for her body to fight. The Jedi healers will better be better able to determine whether this ordeal has at all shortened her life expectancy, but if she keeps improving like she is, then I believe she will be up and around, fully healthy and functional within just a few weeks," the doctor announced. There was huge sigh of relief, as they all exchanged hugs.

"And Kimberly?" Padme asked. The doctor smiled.

"I'd like her to rest for today, but I see no reason why she can't be moved to your quarters. The poison was dispelled by the antidote and her strong immune system is allowing her to recover very quickly," the doctor replied.

"How can I ever thank you both enough?" Bail asked, turning to Anakin and Padme.

"You don't have to. Our thanks will be seeing the people responsible pay, which reminds me, we have an interrogation to attend," Anakin stated.

"Let's go see Kimberly for a minute and we'll have Shane come with us. I know he is eager to face his family," Padme said, as they entered their daughter's med room where Shane was visiting Kimberly…


	9. Part 9 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 9! Thanks for all the great reviews and enjoy!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 9/10

"Are you up for a little company?" Shane asked, as he poked his head inside Kimberly's room. Her face lit up with a smile

"Of course, please come in," she replied.

"Kimberly…I'm so sorry for what my Mom did to you," Shane said.

"It's not your fault. I heard you carried me to the med ward to get help after I fainted. It takes courage to stand up to your family, even when they're wrong," Kimberly replied.

"I'm so ashamed of my parents and my second cousin. I'll…understand if you never want to see me again," he said sadly.

"And I would be really sad if I never got to see you again. I don't want you to go anywhere," she replied.

"Then I won't go until you send me away," he said.

"Well, don't count on that happening, because the doctor said I'm going to be fine and I…I like spending time with my newest friend, who I'd like to get to know even better," she hinted.

"Well, then it's only proper that I take you on a real date when everything calms down," Shane replied. She smiled.

"I'd love that," she replied, as her parents entered. Shane stood and bowed respectfully to them.

"Hello Shane, Anakin and I are going to speak with your parents now. We'll understand if you don't want to come, but you are welcome to, if you want," Padme told him gently.

"Thank you Senator and I do want to come. I need to face them. I love them, despite all they've done and I want to say goodbye, before they are taken to sentencing before parliament," Shane stated. Padme put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know parliament will recommend capital punishment for the nature of their crimes and I can't imagine what you must be feeling. I believe, however, a life sentence in the Jedi prison on Yavin IV is still severe punishment. If you'd like, I can make a recommendation to parliament that your parents receive a life sentence. Merek, however, is too dangerous to receive the same, but I can see what I can do for your parents," Padme said.

"Thank you for such a kind and generous offer, but you don't have to do that. They have to face the full consequences for their crimes. They committed the highest treason possible and I believe in the law. I…I don't want them to die, but their vicious crimes cannot go unpunished," Shane stated sadly.

"You're a very brave young man," Padme told him.

"Mom…I'm feeling better. Can I come too?" Kimberly asked.

"The doctor wants you to rest today, so Luke and Leia are going to take you to our quarters, so you don't have to stay here," Padme told her. She nodded in acceptance, even thought she wanted to go. As they left, Luke and Leia entered to help her get around and ready to leave the room for the palace quarters they were staying in.

As Shane entered the conference room behind Anakin and Padme, Elsa stood up. They had spent the night locked in a cell and had now been brought here in stun cuffs.

"Shane…look at what these people have done to us. These Jedi won't release us from these bonds!" Elsa cried, seeking her son's support. But she was about to get a very rude awakening.

"You're a criminal. Crimes of treason and attempted murder are taking very seriously here on Alderaan and in the Republic," Shane stated coolly.

"Shane…you can't possibly be against us! We're you're family!" Elsa cried in outrage,

"You've all committed high treason! You conspired to kill the Queen! And you Mother, you poisoned Kimberly! She did nothing to you and she is a wonderful girl. How could you?" Shane spat.

"Both our daughter and Queen Breha are going to be fine, by the way," Anakin added.

"You've betrayed us and sided with our enemies, I see," Shefan spat.

"I am an Officer in the Alderaanian Navy and I am loyal to the crown, which I've never wanted for myself, nor was it ever meant for me. And the three of you will receive punishment for your crimes," Shane stated.

"You are a disgrace to your ancestors, brat," Merek spat.

"From what I'm hearing about my ancestors, they are no one to proud of," Shane retorted

"And from what we've come to understand, the Xalryn are an ancient race that date back over a millennia. Most are born with the aptitude of a genius, but are relatively Force blind. But every so often, one is born with a very high concentration of midichlorians like Sifo-Dyas and they were some of the most powerful Sith Lords of the ancient times. They are worshipped and revered like Gods by the Xalryn people, because it is believed they can achieve control over the galaxy for the people," Dooku stated.

"Sifo-Dyas is the greatest Sith King our people have ever produced and he will realize our people's destiny," Merek said.

"Not if we have anything to say about it. Artoo, show the first page scan of the journal," Anakin told the droid. He whirled and displayed a large hologram image of a page of symbols from Sifo-Dyas' journal they had discovered years ago.

"Where did you get that?" Merek questioned.

"We recovered it in the Nabooan ocean years ago. It was lost by Sifo-Dyas himself, yet we haven't been able to translate it. Now we can, because you're going to do it for us," Anakin stated. Merek smirked.

"Not a chance in Sith hell," he spat.

"Then I'll just use a mind probe and take the information on how to translate it myself," Anakin growled.

"Go ahead; it will do you no good. These are only the symbols that encode the ancient language. It cannot be learned by an adult. Xalryn children are taught from the age of three, before the mind begins to fully develop. Even if you use a mind probe on me, you will neither be able to retain or understand the information," Merek sneered smugly.

"What do you mean they are symbols that encode the language?" Anakin demanded. "He means that each symbol represents a letter in the Xalryn alphabet," Shane piped in. They all turned to him.

"You can decode these symbols?" Dooku asked, a hopeful anticipation in his voice.

"Yes, Master Jedi. Merek began teaching me from the time I was three. I never saw the value in learning such a useless, extinct language, but since my father never had the aptitude to learn it, he was adamant that I learned," Shane explained.

"I taught you, but that was before I realized that you would turn on your heritage and defect to these fools," Merek spat.

"Would you be willing to translate the diary for us?" Anakin asked.

"Don't you dare, boy!" Merek roared.

"I would. Translating the symbols is very time consuming and just translating this one page could take all day. The entire diary could take me months, but I am willing to do it, especially if it could prevent more evil acts from occurring," Shane stated.

"Betray the King and he will have you hunted down," Merek threatened.

"You'll be protected and we'll need you to come to Coruscant," Anakin told him. Shane nodded.

"I'll do whatever it takes," he replied.

"Well, I guess we don't need you after all, Doc Ugly. I'm sure parliament will see that you're executed too for your crimes. Where's your great and all mighty King now when you need him to save your ass? Oh that's right, he's just a floating phantom that has no real power anymore," Riley said smugly. Merek snarled.

"It doesn't matter, the King will have the last laugh and he'll make you his Queen in the end, Senator, after he drains your husband's powers and kills your loudmouth father," Merek said, glaring at Padme. Anakin stepped in his line of vision.

"The next time Sifo-Dyas faces me in whatever new body they're constructing for him, will be his last stand, I assure you. I will rip him to shreds before I let him touch my wife," Anakin growled. Merek chuckled evilly.

"We shall see, Chosen One," Merek spat.

"Take them back to their cell. Parliament will decide their fate," Anakin told the two Royal Guard Officers, as they entered.

"Shane, I have another question for you," Yan stated, his face showing that he was quite perplexed.

"Yes Sir?" he asked.

"You said that in order to learn the ancient language that is encoded in this system of symbols, one must begin learning at the age of at least three," Yan stated.

"Yes Sir, it becomes too difficult after that age to learn both the Xalryn alphabet and language, not to mention the ancient hieroglyphs that are used to code the language. Cousin Merek always said Father was never smart enough to learn it. He probably wouldn't have taught me had he known I would be helping the Republic. But I am happy that my knowledge will be useful to the Jedi," Shane replied.

"Oh it will. We've wanted to translate the diary for years now, but that is not why I am asking," Yan said, before continuing.

"You see, Sifo-Dyas has several entries in the diary that are written in basic. He specifically tells how he discovered his heritage and acquired the diary in his mid thirties. If that is true, then it would mean that he cannot read the language either," Yan stated, as they all exchanged looks.

"If that's true, then he not only can't read the language, but he can't write it either," Anakin said.

"This means that the diary really isn't his. It belonged to someone who could script the language!" Padme exclaimed.

"It also means that he lost it before he could have it translated. He doesn't know what's in this journal either," Yan stated, as they all let the revelation sink in. The implications raised more questions, like what was truly written in the pages, who wrote them, and why had it been so important to Sifo-Dyas. But all those answers possibly lay within those pages, which would now soon be translated for them. And Dooku had a feeling that all the knowledge he had set out to learn was in those pages.

"Shane, I want you to understand that helping us could be dangerous. We'll see that you're protected on Coruscant, but once Sifo-Dyas learns that you're translating the language for us, he'll want you dead," Anakin explained.

"After all my family has done, this is the least I can do. I appreciate the protection though and I'm no slouch with a good blaster," Shane replied. Anakin smirked.

"So I've heard. That's why you should pack one of these," Anakin said, as he handed him a Sentry hand blaster. Shane's eyes widened in awe.

"Is this a Sentry blaster?" he asked.

"Yep and I don't just give these out, but I've heard you're an excellent shot. Use it well," Anakin said.

"Thank you Sir. I'll start translating as soon as possible and I won't let you down," Shane said.

"I know and you can start working on the translations when we return to Coruscant. For now, I promised my daughter you'd come see her," Anakin said. Shane smiled.

"Thank you again, Sir," Shane said, as he left to see Kimberly.

"I'm surprised," Padme mentioned.

"By what?" he asked.

"You just allowed a boy to go see your tiny angel without grilling him to tears," Padme joked.

"He's a good kid. He's smart, brave, an Officer in the military, knows how to handle most weapons, and would and could protect our Kimberly if he had to. If I have to let her date, which you assured me that I have to, then I would have no objections to Kimberly dating a young man like Shane. He definitely can't be judged by his parent's actions," Anakin stated.

"Very true, but you know, the same could be said about Jake," she replied coyly.

"I don't like Clovis, but my dislike for Jake is based solely upon his own actions," Anakin stated.

"Oh Ani, he's not that bad," Padme replied.

"Angel, he can't handle a blaster to save himself, let alone Leia, if he had to, he sneaks out and goes clubbing, which means he also drinks, and he has been caught practically feeling our daughter up in front of me. Don't you think, based on those instances, it would be a little weird if I _did_ like him?" Anakin asked.

"You do make a very valid point," she agreed.

"Any young man that dates one of our daughters is going to have to earn my respect and trust. Shane is well on his way and Jake better start stepping it up," Anakin replied.

"Well, Leia has good judgment. She'll make the right decisions," Padme said confidently.

"I know. We raised some good kids," he said smiling at her. She smiled back.

"So now, I guess we'll leave for home tomorrow?" she asked. He nodded.

"After the hearing. Looks like we did it. Breha's going to be okay, the Alleman family, with the exception of Shane, will pay for their crimes, and eventually, we'll learn what is written in the journal Sifo-Dyas was so desperate to get back so many years ago," Anakin said.

"And maybe even who wrote it," she added.

"Then I'll make sure Sifo-Dyas truly pays for all the evil he's done and I will see to it that he is destroyed this time forever," he promised. She nodded.

"I know, I've never doubted you and I never will," she replied, as their lips met in a tender kiss.

"Come on, let's go see if the kids left us any breakfast in the dining hall. I'm starved," he said. She giggled.

"That's nothing new," she teased.

Shane knocked at the door of the residence the Skywalker family was staying in and a golden protocol droid answered.

"May I help you, Sir?" Threepio asked.

"I'm Shane and I came to see Kimberly," he replied.

"Oh yes, Miss Kimberly said you'd be coming," Threepio responded, as he stepped aside and allowed Shane to come in.

"Hello Shane," Kimberly said, as she walked into the room.

"Are you sure you should be up and around?" he asked in concern.

"I'm taking it easy, but I really feel fine," she replied.

"Good. I'm glad and these are for you," he said, as he produced a bouquet of white Alderaanian lilies and presented them to her. She gasped.

"Oh, they're beautiful! I'll get a vase for them," she said, as he followed her into the kitchen.

"Would you like a glass of blue milk? I was just about to have one myself and then we can talk. I sense you have a lot to tell me," she said. He smiled. He found her so incredibly fascinating.

"Blue milk sounds great and your intuition serves you well," he replied.

"Please allow me to get the beverages, Miss Kimberly," Threepio said.

"Thanks Threepio," she replied, as she and Shane retired to the living area.

Natalie laughed and hugged her Mother, who was sitting up, looking better than she had in years already. Her color was starting to come back and she was already regaining her strength. And the smile on Natalie's face was the most wonderful thing Jayden had ever seen. Since Breha was still very much recovering, she tired quickly and Natalie slipped out with him, while her Father stayed.

"Oh Jay, she's going to be okay!" Natalie said, as she hugged him. He picked her up and spun her around. As he set her back on her feet, he cupped her beautiful face with his hand, as they gazed into each other's eyes.

"I love you and I couldn't have got through any of this without you," she said. He smiled.

"And I'll always be here," he replied.

"I saw what you did…in the docking bay earlier. You lifted that heavy bin with your powers," she said. He shrugged.

"I had to protect you," he replied.

"It had to weigh a ton," she mentioned in awe.

"Compared to the strength of my love for you, it felt like nothing. With my mind focused on my love for you, it was almost effortless," he said.

"We're not like other couples, are we?" she asked. He shook his head.

"No, but in a good way," he replied. She smiled and nodded, truly comforted knowing that she would never have to worry about having her heart broken by a boy. Most girls had to worry about that when they fell in love. The possibility was there most of the time, but it wasn't for Natalie, because she and Jayden had a love that would last forever.

_This vignette wraps up in the next installment, as parliament holds a hearing to determine sentencing for the crimes the Alleman family has committed. Shane prepares to move to Coruscant to begin work on translating the journal and returns to the Capital world with the Skywalker family, leaving the life of an Alleman behind and beginning a whole new chapter in his life, one that he will be finally be allowed to forge on his own._


	10. Part 10 of 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in.

AN: Here's part 10! Thanks for all the great reviews and continued support for this series. I'm so glad so many enjoy it. Enjoy this next installment and let me know what you think!

Royal Conspiracy: A Forever Destined Vignette

Part 10/10

Adam stirred slightly and Anya brushed his bangs away from his forehead, as he slowly came around. He opened his eyes and focused on his Mother's face, as she gazed down at him.

"Mom…" he rasped.

"It's okay baby, you're going to be fine," she soothed.

"Pooja…" he cried, as he tried to sit up, but she stopped him.

"She's fine too, thanks to you," Anya said, as her son looked up at her, noticing the bandage on her nose and the bruises on her face.

"I'm fine too. He's gone, they both are. They can't hurt us anymore," Anya promised.

"Good…they ruined too many lives. I'm glad they finally got what was coming to them," Adam said bitterly, as Anya stroked her son's cheek.

"I met Pooja because of Father, but it's also because of him that she'll probably never want to see me again," Adam said, as tears welled in his eyes.

"That's very untrue," Obi-Wan said, as he appeared in the doorway. Adam sobered and quickly wiped the tears away.

"He's right darling. She's been here by your side this whole time," Anya promised.

"She has?" he asked.

"Yes, I finally dragged her away and sent her to get something to eat, but she'll be back soon," Sola said, as she approached with her husband.

"You saved my baby's life at what could have very well been at the cost of your own. Thank you," Sola said sincerely.

"I love her, but I will understand if she wants nothing to do with me," Adam said, lowering his head in shame.

"Oh I believe she still very much wants to be a part of your life. I know that in disobeying your father's orders, you knew that he would try and have you killed. But you did anyway and did everything you could to protect my daughter. For that, I am very grateful," Obi-Wan stated.

"What about my Mother? Anything she's ever done was because Father made her. Even when she obeyed him, he still abused her," Adam said.

"Sweetheart, I still did some very bad things and I accept whatever sentence the Jedi Council deems appropriate," Anya stated.

"If you had not obeyed Xalazar, he would have killed you. You wouldn't have been any good to Adam if you had been dead. You did what you had to in order to protect your child. Believe me; I know what that's like. My first husband was a monster too, but Adam is the good man he is because of you. This will be a new beginning for both of you on Naboo, if you wish," Sola replied.

"My wife is right. You and your son are just two more of Xalazar's victims. However, for full clemency, the Chancellor has asked for something from you," Obi-Wan stated.

"Name it," Anya replied.

"You have the power to bring the rest of the De'reux Empire down. You have all the information and knew all the operatives. Will you give us all the information you can?" Obi-Wan asked.

"You have my full cooperation. I can give you names, locations, operations, aliases, and conspirators. I can and will bring the entire De'reux Empire down," Anya replied. Obi-Wan smiled.

"Then you and your son will become official citizens of Coruscant and Naboo as soon as the papers are filed," Obi-Wan told her.

"May I make a change on the identification papers?" Anya asked.

"What kind of change?" Obi-Wan asked.

"My last name and my son's. I would like both changed to my maiden name," Anya requested.

"Consider it done. What name should it be changed to?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Knight. Anya and Adam Knight," she answered.

"I'll have the change made," Obi-Wan promised, as Adam's eyes got big suddenly.

"Captain Landrey…he's employed by my father," Adam panicked, but Obi-Wan put his hand up.

"Landrey was arrested this morning, which leaves me without a Captain of the Royal Guard. I suppose I will have to interview new candidates unless you'll just help me out by accepting the promotion and position, once you're fully recovered, of course," Obi-Wan said. Adam's eyes widened.

"Me Sir?" he asked in surprise.

"You did save my daughter's life," he stated.

"But surely there are more qualified and more experienced candidates," Adam replied.

"Perhaps, but I think you're the best man for the job, if you'll accept," Obi-Wan stated.

"He accepts, because I'll have no one else by my side other than my beloved," Pooja told him, as she entered.

"Pooja…" he said.

"The Queen always gets what she wants," Obi-Wan said, as he kissed her forehead and left to tend to his many duties the whole debacle had created.

"Anya, would you care to join me for some tea out in the gardens. I am meeting my sister and we'd love to get to know you," Sola stated. Anya smiled and followed her.

"I'd like that too," she replied, as they left the young couple alone.

"Pooja I…" he started to say, but she silenced him.

"Shh…it's okay, my love," she assured him, as she sat down beside him on his bed.

"But I lied to you," he said shamefully.

"You were only trying to protect me from your father and you saved my life. My feelings for you haven't changed and I still love you. Just never lie to me again. You can tell me anything because nothing is going to change the way I feel about you," Pooja told him.

"Never, I'll never lie to you again, my beloved, I promise. I love you and I'll never do anything to jeopardize what we have again," he promised. She smiled.

"Then you're forgiven…Captain," she said, as she leaned over him.

"I will cherish your benevolence and remember everyday how lucky I am to have you, My Queen," he replied.

"You better," she teased, as they both laughed.

"I love you Adam," Pooja whispered, as their lips were only inches apart.

"And I you, Pooja," he whispered back, as their lips met with tender passion.

Kendra calmly approached her Mother's Throne and waited quietly. She did not have favorable news and knew Ysanne would be angry. Despite their possession of the nearly complete Death Star, the Skywalkers continued to strike down their operatives and score victory after victory against them.

"What is it, Kendra?" Ysanne questioned.

"The Alleman family has failed. The Chosen One and his wife discovered their plot and had the antidote administered to the Queen. And it seems the youngest Alleman has defected to our enemies," Kendra reported.

"Fools…we needed control of Alderaan. But we will have to adjust our plans then for the time being, until we can devise a way to gain control of both Alderaan and Naboo. Fortunately, thanks to the De'reux family, we will have Corellia when the time comes," Ysanne stated. Kendra bit her bottom lip.

"I'm afraid our hold on Corellia is gone as well," Kendra replied.

"What do you mean?" Ysanne demanded.

"Xalazar and his son Devan were killed by Kenobi and his brat on Alderaan after they attempted to kill the Queen of Naboo. De'reux's wife and youngest son have turned against us too. She is telling them everything and the Jedi will have what they need to dismantle the entire De'reux Empire and arrest all conspirators," Kendra reported, as she watched as anything not bolted down in the room began to shake violently as a result of her Mother's anger. Kendra screamed in agony, as black Force lightning hit her chest and sent her falling to the cold floor in agony. Mother tortured daughter for several agonizing moments, before she ceased and loomed over her trembling offspring. Kendra whimpered, as her Mother stepped on her blonde hair.

"Because you're my daughter, I have allowed your failures in the past, but no more. Fail me again, daughter, and I will be forced to make you pay with your life," Ysanne growled, as she lifted her foot off Kendra's hair and allowed the young woman to pick herself up.

"I hope for your sake that your son is progressing better, because your Father needs a strong warrior to possess if he is to go up against Skywalker again," Ysanne stated.

"He is, I assure you. The Kaminoans said he'll be full grown and ready within a year. His abilities have proved to be just as amazing as the Chosen One's. That, combined with Father's superior knowledge of the Force, will be enough to lay waste to the Skywalkers, and thus, the Jedi," Kendra reported.

"Let's hope so or all we have worked toward will be for nothing," Ysanne said, as she stood and strode toward her view window.

"The dark energies that were channeled into him as an infant on Korriban bonded to his spirit. Not even the great Anakin Skywalker can combat something like what we've created," Kendra replied with a smirk.

"Then losing Alderaan and Corellia for the time being matters not, for we will soon take Coruscant instead and therefore, the galaxy will belong to us," Ysanne chuckled evilly.

Padme sighed deeply, as she lay propped up against her husband's bare, glistening chest. Their breathing was slowly returning to normal after a session of powerfully passionate lovemaking. It never ceased to amaze Padme how incredibly raw and insatiable their passion still was for each other, even after almost twenty years of marriage. Padme inched her way up his lean, muscled torso, dropping kisses along the way, until she finally was face to face with him. It had been quite the day; one filled with turmoil and surprises, as they had learned that the diary did not belong to Sifo-Dyas at all and had been written by someone else. The implications of what that could possibly mean had stifled their thoughts all day. Then finally when they were alone for the evening, they let everything, all the uncertainties melt away, until it was just their love remaining. And as always, they came to realize that it didn't matter what they would have to face, because their love would always win out in the end, even in their darkest hours. Those realizations had, of course, given way to the physical manifestation of their love and was the exact renewal for their minds, bodies, and souls that was needed. Anakin gently kissed her lips, as he tilted his head. Padme mewled into his kiss, as he moved his lips over hers sensually. He smiled at her as their lips parted.

"Your beauty continually takes my breath away. I am truly the luckiest man alive," he told her.

"I'm the lucky one. You're so wonderful to me, so handsome…and sexy," her voice trailed off, as he kissed her neck.

"I can't believe that in just a few weeks we'll be celebrating our twentieth anniversary," he said. She smiled.

"Me either. They've been the most wonderful years of my life," Padme replied, as she kissed him passionately. Anakin slowly slipped out of bed, even as their lips still met in a continuous series of passion filled lip locks

"Where are you going?" she asked, as she saw him slowly slip on a pair of underneath shorts. She pouted her lip out, making him chuckle.

"And why are you putting clothes on?" she asked.

"I had room service send up a bottle of wine and some chocolate covered shurra earlier. It's chilling in the fridge. I'm going to get it, but I'll be right back," he promised. She sat up with the bed sheets wrapped around her petite body and she kissed him, as he leaned down over her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and the sheet slipped away from her form, as she plundered his mouth, while pressing herself against his chest. She bit her bottom lip playfully as she released his lips and enjoyed the glazed look on his face.

"Those shorts look uncomfortably tight, baby," she purred seductively.

"That would be your fault, star nymph," he retorted back playfully.

"Hurry back sexy Jedi," she called, as he turned away and hurried to the kitchen to get the snack and wine, which would lead up to more passionate lovemaking. Padme covered her body with the white silk sheet and wrapped it around her body, as she got out of bed and walked to the window, gazing out at the beautiful half moon that illuminated the midnight sky. She opened the latch and slid the glass open, letting the fresh cool night air dry her still slightly dampened skin. The air quickly gave her chill bumps and she slid the window closed to lock out the chilly night air. She turned and walked back toward the bed when suddenly, the window slid open again and a strong gust of wind tossed her hair about. She turned and looked at the window with wide, horrified eyes, as it slid closed again and the wind ceased. Padme's heartbeat quickened and her eyes darted around the room, as she suddenly felt like she was being watched. She clutched the sheet tightly around her body and she was about to scream for Anakin, but he came through the bedroom door at that moment. An angry gust of wind extinguished the candlelight and he set the tray down, before hurrying to her side.

"Angel…was he here?" Anakin asked.

"I…don't…" she said, as tears welled in her eyes. She tried hard to hold them back and swallowed the lump in her throat.

"I didn't see him, but I could feel his eyes on me…" she cried, as she fell into his arms.

"He's gone angel…he's too much of a _coward_ to show himself to me," Anakin said, as his sapphire gaze pierced every corner of the room. She quickly sobered.

"I'm not going to let him do this to me; not tonight. I'm spending a quiet, romantic evening with my husband and no disembodied, cowardly old man is going to spoil that," Padme spat, as she let her gaze travel over the room too. He was long gone, she knew, but she had a feeling he could somehow still hear them. His form was still too weak for him to show himself around Anakin, for his Force light would snuff what was left of him out of existence at this point in time.

"You've been mine for the last twenty years and you'll be mine for the next twenty and the twenty after that. You'll be mine for eternity, just as you always have been since the beginning," he told her. She smiled.

"You're right, I'm yours. I always have been and I always will be. And I'm not going to let some insane old fool spoil our romantic respite anymore tonight," she responded, as their lips met in a tender kiss. He smiled and picked the tray up, before setting it down on the bedside table. He poured the velvety red wine into two long stemmed glasses and handed one to her, as he guided a piece of chocolate covered fruit into her mouth. She bit into it and enjoyed the taste of rich chocolate and sweet fruit, before sipping at her wine.

"You know that wine and chocolate make me frisky," she mentioned playfully. He smirked.

"Yes, which means fun for both of us," he replied, as he ate a piece of chocolate covered fruit as well. She kissed him with passionate fervor, beckoning him to the bed. Their kisses turned feverish once again, as passion's spell claimed them. Using the Force, Anakin extinguished all light in the room and their sexual euphoria resumed and their love burned as brightly and hotly his as ever…

The next morning, as parliament got settled, Anakin escorted Padme to the guest seating. Today would be no ordinary session though. Duke and Duchess Alleman were going to be sentenced for their crimes. There would be no need for a trial, for the evidence against them had forced their confession. In exchange for their cooperation, Shefan and Elsa would not receive the death penalty. Merek had not accepted the same deal and would likely face capital punishment for refusing to tell them all he knew about his people and his work. And unfortunately, what Shefan and Elsa knew was of little help. But thanks to their son Shane, they would hopefully uncover the secrets in the mysterious journal that had once been in the possession of Sifo-Dyas.

To everyone's surprise, Breha entered, walking slowly on her husband's arm with a walking cane assisting her on the other side. Anakin smiled at Padme, knowing how much it meant to her that her best friend was going to be okay. Natalie beamed at Jayden, as he greeted her with a hug and they sat down in the row in front of Anakin and Padme.

"I'm so glad you're here," Padme told her. Breha smiled.

"Me too and it's all thanks to the two of you," Breha replied.

"We're just glad justice is going to be served and that you're still with us," Anakin said.

"And I'm so excited to have my best friend back," Padme gushed, as she and Breha hugged.

"Yes, it's been a good day for justice. I just broke the news to the Chancellor that the De'reux Empire is being dismantled piece by piece now. He wants us all to meet at Calin's resort to celebrate as soon as we return," Bail said.

"Sounds great to me, we could all use a night out," Anakin mentioned, as the room quieted and session came to order.

"Today's session will be swift as we do not wish to delay justice," the head speaker stated.

"First allow me to say that it warms my heart to know that our beloved Queen is making a full and complete recovery. I believe I speak for all present in parliament when I welcome you back, Your Highness," he said, as the room applauded for Breha.

"Now onto the business before us," he continued, as the floor turned all attention to the three people in the center of the room, all in stun cuffs.

"Will the accused please rise to hear the sentence upon which this parliament has agreed upon," the speaker motioned, as the accused rose from their seats.

"Shefan Alleman, you have been found and charged with conspiracy to commit murder of Alderaan's Queen, the attempted murder of the Queen, and high treason. Your sentence usually carries capital punishment attached to it, but since you saved the people a trial, your sentence has been plead down to life without parole to be served in the Jedi run prison on Yavin IV," the speaker announced, before continuing.

Elsa Alleman, you have been found and charged with conspiracy to commit murder of Alderaan's Queen, the attempted murder of the Queen, and high treason. Your sentence usually carries capital punishment attached to it, but since you saved the people a trial, your sentence has been plead down to life without parole to be served in the Jedi run prison on Yavin IV," the speaker stated, before continuing again.

"Merek Alleman, you have been charged and found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, the attempted murder of Queen Breha, and treason. You have also refused to divulge vital information to our government. Therefore, you shall receive the full mandatory punishment for treason, which will be death by lethal injection to be carried out in twenty-four hours. This session is dismissed," the speaker announced.

"You may kill me, but you will never uncover the secrets you need until it's too late! And my people will rise and stamp out the disease that is the Republic and the Jedi, including you and your pretty wife, Chosen One!" Merek ranted, as he was dragged away.

"And you, boy, you'll burn for helping them! The King will see that you suffer!" he ranted to Shane. But Dooku placed his hand on the young man's shoulder.

"Don't let his threats frighten you. We'll see to your protection," Yan promised. Shane nodded.

"I'm in this for the long run. His threats won't scare me into silence," Shane stated firmly. Kimberly touched his arm and he smiled down at her.

"I'm glad you're moving to Coruscant," she mentioned.

"Me too, I can see you everyday now," he replied. She smiled.

"I better go finish packing, but I'll see you on the ship," she said. He nodded, as he began to start for his quarters in order to finish packing himself, when his parents were led out by the guards.

"You're dead to me," Shefan spat.

"Don't worry Father, I'm dropping the last name Alleman and I'm going to find a new last name for myself. I don't want to be associated with the family name anymore than you want me to be," Shane replied.

"Shane…how could you do this to us? We're your parents!" Elsa cried.

"You tried to murder the Queen and I want no part of your evil. I may be your son, but I am an Officer in the Alderaanian military first. It is my duty to see that those that threaten the crown are punished. I'm just sorry both of you can't see that it's your evil that tore this family apart," Shane said, as he left, not even looking back at them.

_Two days later…_

Bel Iblis raised his glass in a toast, as Anakin and Padme, Sola and Obi-Wan, Bail and Breha, Qui-Gon and Shmi, Yan and Elana, Anya, Calin, and Rex, joined him and his wife Lily. Bel was in especially good spirits this evening, as they celebrated not only Breha's miraculous recovery, but the crumbling of the evil De'reux Empire.

"This toast is the Queen Breha and also to our newest friend, Lady Anya Knight, who is responsible for allowing us to bring down one of the largest crime empire's in history!" Bel called, as they toasted.

"Thank you, but most of the credit goes to my son. Without seeing the courage he displayed by defying Xalazar, I may never have mustered the courage to stand up to him too. Xalazar's cousin has promised revenge, but I've done what is right and my son is happy, so that's all that matters to me," Anya said.

"Still, don't think we're going to leave you without any protection," Anakin said.

"Or a job," Padme added.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"We're keeping pretty tight guard on Xalazar's cousin and all the head operatives, but just in case they somehow get the word out and put a hit on you, I've assigned Commander Rex, my best Officer, as your bodyguard," Anakin said, as Rex bowed politely to her.

"Milady," he greeted.

"That's very kind of you, but I haven't even decided where I'm going to live yet," Anya said.

"Well, I was hoping to help you with that," Padme stated.

"I'll understand if you would rather go to Naboo with Adam, but I could use someone like you as an assistant in my cabinet. You would live in the staff apartments on the thirtieth floor of Republica 500 and you could visit Adam on Naboo during Senate recess," Padme said.

"I…I don't know what to say," Anya replied, shocking by Anakin and Padme's kindness. She had forced herself to hate them for the last twenty years, but had secretly admired them both from afar.

"Say yes Mom, you deserve it," Adam said, as he and Pooja approached. Anya smiled, as she hugged her son and his girlfriend.

"I accept, Senator and I won't disappoint you," Anya replied.

"I know and please, just call me Padme," she said.

"Well then, to new beginnings," Bel toasted, as they all raised their glasses once again and drank.

Leia smiled, as she finished a dance with Jake and he kissed her cheek.

"It's so good to have you back. I missed you," he said sincerely. She blushed.

"I missed you too and I'm sorry you missed the social because of me," Leia replied.

"It…wouldn't have been any fun without you," Jake said. Leia sensed nervousness from him, but she was suddenly distracted by her twin brother, who was moping in the corner by himself while he watched Mara dance with Tek Traviss, a fellow senior Jedi padawan, who was tall, dark, and very handsome. Mara had a crush on him and it looked as though Tek's attention had finally turned to her. Luke didn't like it. Tek was a player and hopped from girl to girl. He had dated half the other female padawans in their age bracket and thought he was the Force's gift to women. He couldn't believe Mara was falling for his charm. Leia saw through Tek's charms too, but would always support her best friend, no matter what and now she needed to give her twin some comfort.

"I'd love to go out into the gardens, but I need to talk to my brother for a few minutes. I'll meet you out there in ten minutes, okay?" she asked. He nodded with a smile, as they parted for a brief time.

As Leia approached, she saw her brother take a glass of wine from one of the waitress' trays. Technically, on Coruscant, they both were of legal drinking age, but as long as they lived under their parent's roof, they were expected to abstain from alcohol until they were twenty-one, which was the legal age on Naboo. It was one of their Mother's stanch rules and their Father supported her fully. But their Mother's rule usually didn't stop either of them from indulging when they went out with friends. She knew her brother had to be stressed if he was risking getting caught by their Mom.

"Don't let Mom see you drinking that," Leia warned. Luke rolled his eyes.

"It's just wine. I don't know why it's such a big deal to Mom and Dad," Luke replied.

"Probably because it can get you drunk and cause you to do stupid and dangerous things," Leia answered, as she followed his gaze to Mara.

"You should go cut in," Leia mentioned.

"Yeah right, she'd lop my arm off if I interrupted her dance with Tek. She's had a crush on him for a long time and she looks happy. He's a sleamo though and he'll just end up hurting her," Luke lamented.

"Mara will hopefully realize that before he does and she does like you very much too," Leia told him.

"As a friend," Luke added.

"That's because you're too shy to make a move!" Leia replied in exasperation.

"I…that's not who I am. I'm not the great Tek Traviss that smooth talks his way into a girl's heart," Luke replied.

"No, you're not and for that, be grateful. Tek smooth talks his way into any girl's bed that he can and you're not like that. You're better than that, because you truly care about her and you'd never hurt her," Leia said. Luke sighed.

"Nice guys never get the girl. I'm not Dad and I've never had an instant connection with a girl before like he did with Mom. Sometimes Mom and Dad have no idea how hard dating can be. They knew the moment they met that they were meant to be," Luke said.

"I know. I've never had an instant connection like that with anyone either. It's going to be harder for us. I know you like Mara, but I think you should stop moping around, get out there, and find another girl, at least for now. That will get Mara's attention, believe me. You deserve to be happy too and you may have to wait for Mara to come to you. If she's the right girl for you, then it will happen," Leia told him. He nodded.

"Thanks Leia," he replied, as she patted his shoulder and left him to his thoughts. She was right. He couldn't just wait around forever for a girl who didn't have any romantic interest in him. He had to move on.

"Hey there handsome," Veronica said, as she snuck up on Jake in the gardens. He scowled at her.

"What are you doing here?" he spat.

"I heard you were here and I thought I'd come see if you're up for a little fun like we had the other night," Veronica said seductively. Jake grit his teeth. The night of the social, his Uncle had encouraged him to go with some friends, even if it was without Leia. He had gotten really drunk, blacked out, and then woke up in bed with Veronica, with no memory of how he had gotten there.

"I was drunk and I don't even remember the other night. I don't even believe what you said happened actually happened," Jake hissed.

"Oh it happened. It happened all night long," she mused.

"Besides, it's not like we haven't hooked up before," she added.

"That was before Leia and ancient history. Whatever happened the other night was a mistake and Leia _CAN'T _know," Jake stressed. Veronica shrugged.

"Fine, it'll be our little secret. But if she was a real girlfriend, she'd give you what you want and need like I did the other night," Veronica whispered, before disappearing out of sight.

"Hey, sorry to keep you waiting," Leia said, as she arrived. He smiled and put his arm around her waist.

"No problem. Is your brother okay?" he asked. She nodded.

"Yeah, he'll be fine," she replied, as Jake leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.

"Are you okay? You seemed aloof earlier," she mentioned.

"Me? Oh yeah, I'm fine. I'm anxious to hear about all the excitement that went down on Alderaan though," he said, quickly covering up his guilt by asking her questions that would take her mind away from his nervousness.

"Well, it's a long story. Let's go for a walk and I'll tell you everything," Leia replied, as they joined hands and began to stroll through the beautiful garden.

Kimberly giggled, as he twirled her and they bowed to each other as the song end, before the walked off the dance floor.

"You are such a good dancer," Kimberly mentioned. He shrugged.

"I used to hate learning that kind of stuff, but it was kind of mandatory growing up in the palace," he said.

"How are you doing with everything?" she asked. He smiled at her.

"I'm fine. I'm still trying to decide on a new last name so I can legally change it. I've been thinking about Shane Supernova!" he said dramatically. She raised an eyebrow and he busted out laughing.

"I'm kidding, I have no idea what to change it to," Shane replied.

"Well, we might be able to help you with that," Natalie said, as she and Jayden approached with Bail and Breha behind them.

"Your Highness," Shane bowed to the Queen.

"Shane, thank you so much for everything you're doing to help the Jedi decipher the mysterious diary. It may very well hold the key to defeating the evil that threatens to plague us," Breha said.

"It is my honor to serve the crown," he replied.

"Yes, you have shown great character these last few days and that's why Breha and I would like to adopt you into the Organa family. We know that you are old enough to be on your own, but you would honor us if you would accept us as your new family. You've brought honor to the crown and we would be honored to call you an Organa," Bail stated.

"I…I don't know what to say," he said in awe.

"Say yes, that is, if you can put up with having a little sister to bug you," Natalie said. He smiled at her.

"I always hated being an only child. I would be honored to be adopted into the royal family," Shane replied. Breha smiled and hugged him.

"Good. Then we will make it official on the legal documents tomorrow and you will officially be Shane Organa," she said. Kimberly smiled.

"I guess that answers your question. You have a new last name now," Kimberly said.

"I take it you approve," he replied. She nodded.

"Very much. I guess my brother isn't the only one dating an Organa now," she said. He smiled.

"Yeah, so I guess that makes you my girlfriend," Shane replied. Kimberly smiled and blushed.

"Yeah, I guess it does," she said, as her heartbeat quickened and his lips slowly lowered onto hers.

Padme smiled, as she danced with the man she loved more than she could describe. Her heart still fluttered with excitement every time he kissed her and every time he touched her, even after twenty years of marriage. The magic and passion had never died; if anything it had only grown and flourished over time. While she knew that they had many battles against evil ahead, she was more than satisfied that they had won this battle and saved one of their best friends.

"Things turned out even better than we hoped," she mentioned.

"Yeah, but that's what you get when you fight evil with the power of love," he replied. She nodded.

"You're right. I love you so much," she said passionately.

"I love you too, my angel," he replied, as their lips met with tender passion. Their lips parted and they were content to watch their children enjoy the evening with their respective friends and people they loved. There were still many questions to be answered the battle between good and evil still very much raged on, but as always, Anakin and Padme were confident that while they would face even more challenges than they had already, nothing would overcome their incredible love.


End file.
